WALTHAM, Mass. -- The Boston Celtics engaged in a longer-than-usual practice session Sunday in part to get additional reps for third-year big man Kelly Olynyk, who is hoping to return to game action on Tuesday night against the Indiana Pacers.

Amid news that swingman Jae Crowder will miss "a couple weeks minimum," the Celtics are hoping to get Olynyk back after more than a month's absence. Olynyk, who separated his shoulder on Feb. 10 in a win over the Los Angeles Clippers, has missed Boston's last 11 games while rehabbing.

"That’s what we’re striving for," Olynyk said when asked if he's targeting a Tuesday return. "It’ll still be a game-time kind of thing. That’s what we’re looking at and trying to do."

Olynyk returned to practice last week but stressed that he hasn't felt comfortable enough to return to game action. He sounded more optimistic after Sunday's workout.

"[The shoulder is] feeling better. It’s loosening up," said Olynyk. "The muscle is getting stronger each day from [strength coach Bryan] Doo and that’s really what it comes down to, if it’s strong enough to rebound and take a hit and help shoot the ball."

Olynyk may not play the same position as Crowder, but he thinks he can add the depth Boston might need to help weather Crowder's absence.

"[The Celtics are] gonna need somebody. They’re gonna need a body," said Olynyk. "Jae’s a big void to fill. He’s been playing great for us the whole year at both ends of the floor, scoring, rebounding, defending. He’s a tough person to fill by a single person, so we’re gonna need a lot of guys to step up in his absence."

Olynyk engaged in the entirety of Boston's workout Sunday that stretched over two hours, a marathon session considering coach Brad Stevens' preference for shorter off-day workouts.

"[Olynyk] went through the whole practice and we did quite a bit of up and down, quite a bit of scrimmage, quite a bit of live action," said Stevens. "So he'll be dependent on how he feels, and I'm sure he'll get with our trainers [Sunday night] and [Monday] and come up with that plan. But it's good that there's some optimism there. Certainly it'd be good to have him back."

Asked how Olynyk looked, Stevens added: "Solid. I thought he was good. One of the reasons why we played a little bit was so that he could get up and down and kind of get the rust off a little bit."