Danny Ainge hired a new, young, first-time NBA head coach, traded away All-Star players for a mountain of future assets and young faces, and Kelly Olynyk had a front-row seat.
That was true in 2013 and it’s true again now.
It would be hard for Olynyk not to see the similarities. Back in 2013 with the Boston Celtics, Ainge made multiple deals on draft night. One with the Dallas Mavericks to send the No. 13 overall pick to Boston and another much more publicized deal that saw Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and now Utah Jazz assistant coach Jason Terry shipped to Brooklyn.
“Overnight successes don’t actually happen overnight. It takes work, it takes time.” — Utah Jazz’s Kelly Olynyk on team rebuilds
Ainge had also hired Brad Stevens, a fresh-faced young coach from the college ranks, to be the next head coach of the Celtics.
This time around, Will Hardy is the new, young coach and the Jazz have traded Donovan Mitchell, Rudy Gobert, Bojan Bogdanovic and Royce O’Neale.
“We’re almost in the exact same situation,” Olynyk said. “You have some older guys with experience, you’ve got some young guys, you have a bunch of draft picks coming in for the next few years and just trying to get better every single day. I think it’s gonna be great for us.”
This time, Olynyk isn’t a rookie. He’s a veteran that has seen the way the NBA works and is familiar with what leads to successful rebuilds and who is able to carry out the task in a positive way, which is why he is looking forward to what could be the Jazz’s future.
“I’m excited — I’m excited to be here and I’m excited to be a part of this,” Olynyk said. “I love the people they have in the front office. I think they have a great direction and plan in place for where they want to get to and want to go and how to get there. I believe in them.”
None of it is going to be easy, which is something that both Olynyk and veteran Malik Beasley have both warned. The fruits of the labors of the team and the front office might not be seen right away, but the important thing is to remember that there is a bigger goal that everyone is heading toward.
The Jazz will need to take their time and be patient.
Olynyk wasn’t even expecting the trade and so the first few days of training camp have been his only exposure to many of the players and coaches on this team. That’s the case for many of the players, who are not only learning each other’s tendencies but also each other’s names for the first time.
With preseason games beginning Sunday, first with a stop in Edmonton, Alberta, against the Toronto Raptors and then in Portland to face the Trail Blazers, the Jazz are about to get their first taste of how much work is ahead of them.
“Overnight successes don’t actually happen overnight,” Olynyk said. “It takes work, it takes time.”
