Kelly Olynyk won’t be suiting up for the Utah Jazz this week.
The Jazz big man is set to be re-evaluated Friday as he continues to work his way back from a sprained left ankle that he aggravated on Jan. 8.
“It’s definitely annoying,” Olynyk said. “You always want to be there to help your team and support any way you can. Having to just sit there and wait and watch and try to find other ways to be impactful and helpful, it’s tough, especially when it kind of drags on more than you’d hoped and anticipated.”
Olynyk originally suffered the injury on Dec. 17 and missed four games before returning on Dec. 28. But then he twisted the ankle again on Jan. 8 and has missed another six games since then.
He started to get in some on-court work with the Jazz on Wednesday and has gone through portions of practice since then, but because he already aggravated the injury once, he has to be patient and cautious.
“It’s not like if I do more, it’ll get better,” Olynyk said with some frustration. “You just have to like, be patient and work at it, give it some time, and then work at it again. That’s kind of the most annoying thing with injuries and stuff is the harder you work doesn’t always pan out into timetables and recovery.”
Meanwhile the Jazz and the rest of the league are nearing one of the most important dates on the NBA calendar — the Feb. 9 trade deadline — and Olynyk’s name has been brought up in multiple trade rumors over the last couple of weeks.
Though it might seem to make things even more stressful for Olynyk, as he has more time on his hands as he works back from injury, the 31-year-old said that after so many years in the league he’s learned to just kind of go with the flow.
“It happens, you know. I’ve been traded twice now, a couple offseason moves and it is what it is,” Olynyk said. “Whoever you’re with, you want to continue to help that organization and franchise and be thankful for the opportunity they gave you if they move on. If not, you’re here and working with this group to keep building, keep getting better. When I first got in the league, you’re kind of anxious, nervous all the time. Now, it’s like, you’ve been through it, you’re not worried about it or thinking about it anymore.”
So, although Olynyk can’t be on the court with the Jazz, he’s been doing his best to stay involved and engaged. He’s talking with players during timeouts, at practices, and making sure to point out anything he sees that could be useful, especially to the younger players.
“Just being present and communication,” he said. “I’ll tell guys what I see, give encouragement, and all those kinds of things that come with being a great teammate.”