Kelly Olynyk has been a bright spot for the rebuilding Celtics

TORONTO – Kelly Olynyk is trying to keep his mind off the things he can’t control.

The 23-year-old Toronto native is part of a rebuilding Boston Celtics franchise that recently traded away long-time star point guard Rajon Rondo, Olynyk's fellow Canadian men’s national team teammate Dwight Powell, big man Brandan Wright and now appears to have a deal in place to move Jeff Green, the team's leading offensive producer.

Change, as Olynyk understands, is part of the business of professional sports, so rather than focusing on front office decisions and getting swallowed up in discussions about what lies ahead for the franchise, he’s put his full attention towards working on ways to improve his game in the latter half of his sophomore season.

“I think the biggest thing for Kelly is just continuing to be assertive,” Celtics head coach Brad Stevens said prior to a 109-96 loss to the Raptors Saturday night. “It’s easy to point out some shots that he passes up, but also just believing in himself and his abilities on the other end of the floor. His positioning is almost always good and he’s more mobile than he sometimes gives himself credit for.”

Consistency is also a word that’s thrown around when discussing areas where Olynyk’s game can improve.

At his best the seven footer has proven to be an efficient scorer – he’s averaging 11.4 points a game and shooting over 51 per cent from the field (18th in the league) this season – who can handle the ball well and stretch the floor with his three-point shot.

That versatile offensive game was on display Saturday, when he led all scorers with 23 points on 8 of 11 shooting including 2 of 4 from three-point range in just over 27 minutes.

But over the course of the season he’s also gone through stretches where he’s struggled to provide much of anything offensively. During a four-game stint in December he shot just 3 of 21 from the field and he then had an almost equally abysmal four-game run earlier this month when he managed to shoot just 6 of 20 from the floor.

Those types of offensive slumps, combined with the fact that he can’t compete physically with some of the stronger frontcourts in the league on the defensive end of the floor, is likely why Olynyk lost his job in the starting lineup to Tyler Zeller earlier in the season.

With regards to the ups and downs in his offensive game however, Stevens doesn’t appear to be concerned.

“Consistency is a factor for young people generally,” he said. “It’s a factor for probably everyone in the league except for the great ones – that’s why they’re great.”

“82 games is a lot,” Olynyk said after the loss when asked why he believes it's so tough to stay consistent over a full season. “You have to bring it every single night and the other teams have hours and hours of film on you. They know what you do and what you want to do. They have plans on how to stop you and your team so it’s tough to get what you want every night. You just have to bring it and take what the defence gives you.”

While the Celtics didn’t get the result they were looking in Toronto, Olynyk did have some reason to smile postgame beyond the fact that he put forth a strong effort.

Saturday was the first time this season that he’s played in his hometown and he admits playing at the Air Canada Centre, especially in front of a sold out crowd, brings back some special memories.

“It’s really cool,” he said. “It takes you back. I remember coming here as a kid and [the Raptors] selling out with 19,800 people [in the building] back when Vince [Carter], Alvin Williams, Tracy McGrady and those guys were here. The place was rocking all the time. It’s a great place to play.”

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