Former Xavier guard Quincy Olivari earns high praise from Lakers' Redick, LeBron James
Former Xavier Musketeers guard Quincy Olivari scored 11 points in the Los Angeles Lakers' comeback preseason victory over the Milwaukee Bucks on Thursday.
Olivari, who is on an Exhibition 10 contract with the Lakers, recorded a plus/minus of +20 in just nine minutes, connecting on 3-of-4 of his three-point attempts while adding five rebounds and a pair of assists. An Exhibition 10 contract is a one-year, non-guaranteed NBA contract that allows players to participate in training camp.
Olivari earned high praise from first-year head coach J.J. Redick.
"Quincy (Olivari) just completely changed the game. To me, and I told our guys this after, what he did is the blueprint for what we're asking for a few of our players in terms of just picking up full court, being disruptive, taking time off the shot clock," Redick said, according to Lakersnation.com. "I thought he just executed exactly what we want from someone in his position, and we've challenged a number of guys and they've done it well to varying degrees. But, I haven't seen it executed that well until tonight with Quncy."
Lakers undrafted player Quincy Olivari gets put into the 4th quarter by JJ Redick & man did he take advantage of the minutes given to him.
Not only was he hitting crucial buckets, but he was being a pest picking up full court, loved the hustle and easily won MVP for tonight. pic.twitter.com/XOPQqz0EJm— LakeShow Highlights (@LSH_lakeshow) October 11, 2024
Olivari shared on X that he was watching NBA on ESPN and noticed a segment the show did on his performance Thursday night.
Wow, I was just watching NBA Today and then I popped up on the screen. Im just very very thankful. All honor and Glory goes to God
— Quincy Olivari (@quincyolivari) October 11, 2024
Olivari went undrafted and signed an Exhibit 10 contract with the Lakers in June. Less than a month later, Olivari scored 20 points in a Lakers' NBA Summer League victory over the Chicago Bulls.
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During the Lakers' Media Day, Olivari posed for a picture with LeBron James. It prompted Lakers' fans to ask, "who is #41?"
After Olivari's efforts on Thursday, James chimed in on Instagram with a picture of Olivari, saying, "They know who (number) 41 is now."
LeBron's IG Story: "They know who 41 is now"
Quincy Olivari had 11 PTS (3/4 3PT), 5 REB, 2 AST in 9 MINS https://t.co/mhEzvPxre1 pic.twitter.com/4iuwBDy0gp— Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) October 11, 2024
Olivari set the school's single-season record for 3-pointers (106) in 34 games in his lone season at Xavier. He was an honorable mention all-conference selection and surpassed 2,000 career collegiate points. Olivari was named second-team All-District 5 by the National Association of Basketball Coaches and was selected to the Division I East All-Stars for the 2024 NABC-Reese's Division I College All-Star Game.
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This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Quincy Olivari earns high praise from Lakers' Redick, LeBron James