An influx of healthy bodies has put Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra in a tough position, forced to shuffle his lineup and accommodate his players in different minute allocations. Center Kelly Olynyk now finds himself as the odd man out in the rotation, obscured by a tandem of starter Hassan Whiteside and second-year big man Bam Adebayo.
Last season, it was Olynyk and Adebayo who soaked up most of the minutes during the playoffs, only to see it change over the course of a few games.
The sixth-year pro won't complain about his lack of minutes, fully understanding of the predicament Spoelstra is in after surviving most of the season with a shortage of available players.
“It is what it is,” said Olynyk, having gone from starter to spectator, according to Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel. “Can't get too high, can't get too low.”
In the past four games, Olynyk has seen 13, 12, four minutes, and a healthy scratch on Monday's loss to the Boston Celtics during a busy road trip.
“You look at the game saying, ‘I definitely think I can help out there. I can make an impact, make a difference,'” said Olynyk. “But Coach has to do his job and I don't envy him, because it's not an easy job. But he has to do his job and he decided obviously to go a different way, go with different lineups and he's paid to do his job, so that's what he does. And we're paid to do ours, and that's what we got to do and just be ready whenever your number is called or whatever the job is that people want you to do.”
Others like James Johnson have noticed another lineup change is in the works, given the lackadaisical effort shown in recent weeks, as their playoff chances have been put at risk after losing five of their last eight games.
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