Kelly Olynyk's long road with Canadian basketball pays off with World Cup medal

It's been a long haul for Kelly Olynyk and Canada's senior men's basketball team.

This summer, the Kamloops, B.C., native and his Canadian teammates enjoyed stops in Iceland, Germany, Spain, Abu Dhabi, Indonesia and the Philippines, where they won bronze at the FIBA Men's Basketball World Cup and earned a berth in the 2024 Olympic Games.

"It was a lot of miles and [was taxing] on your body, but in the end, it's worth it," Olynyk told CBC's Daybreak Kamloops from an airport as he was set to catch a flight to Japan en route to the U.S. to attend a friend's wedding.

Canada captured bronze after a 127–118 overtime win over the U.S. in the bronze-medal game on Sunday. It was a particularly sweet victory for 32-year-old team captain Olynyk, whose commitment to the national team has never wavered despite a number of disappointing losses over the years.  

"Just to get back on the world stage, not only for ourselves but as an inspiration for all the future generations ... it means a lot," Olynyk said.

"Hopefully, it has a bigger impact than we can even see at the moment."

'Whatever it takes'

Watching the game back in Kamloops were Olynyk's father, Ken, a longtime basketball coach, and mother, Arlene. The bronze-medal game in Manila tipped off well after 1 a.m. PT, and they were up in the wee hours of the morning to watch it live. 

"It was ... very stressful," said Ken. "Arlene tends to start cleaning the house when the game gets really stressful, and I start yelling, and she tells me, 'Don't yell at the TV.'"

Olynyk finished the game with 11 points and nearly won it for Canada on the final play of regulation with a 30-footer that hit the back iron as time expired.

Ken says he replayed the shot over and over in his mind as any coach would. 

"If that shot was an inch or two shorter, it was in because it came off the back rim and directly back towards him, which meant it was exactly on line and would have been in the basket," Ken said. 

Olynyk wasn't in the starting lineup for the bronze-medal game after starting every other game in the tournament. Ken says the coaching staff explained to him that the U.S. were planning to go with a smaller lineup, so they wanted the six-foot-11-inch Olynyk to come off the bench. 

"He said, 'Of course. Whatever it takes,'" Ken said of his son's reaction.

"He's a consummate team person, and I really believe he contributed well in that game."

The medal is Canada's first on either the World Cup or Olympic stage since 1936, when Canada earned silver at the Berlin Games.

Following his whirlwind summer, Olynyk says he plans to take a bit of time off before reporting to training camp for the Utah Jazz. The NBA veteran will no doubt have his sights set on playing for Canada at the Summer Games in Paris. 

Canada's success at the World Cup, he says hopefully, will lead young Canadian basketball players to want to represent their country.

His advice to those younger players? 

"Fall in love with the process," he said. "If you love the game, it'll take you wherever you want to go."