Oubre Quietly Turning into the Player the Warriors Thought He Would Be
It was no secret that Kelly Oubre Jr. struggled to start the season. Oubre was brought in to start alongside Andrew Wiggins on the wing in order to replace the injured Klay Thompson. After a career year with the Suns in the 2019-20 season in which he averaged 18.7 points per game, 6.4 rebounds per game, and shot 35.2% from three (all career highs), the Warriors took a shot on Oubre in order to keep their postseason hopes alive.
It was never going to be an easy transition. Despite being tasked with filling a Klay Thompson-sized hole on the roster, the two have very different skillsets on offense. Both players are good defenders, but Kelly played more of a slasher role for the Suns while the Warriors were desperately in need of shooting help. Still, if Oubre could replicate his 2019-20 season, he would not only be good enough from behind the arc but also help bring some new elements to the Warriors offense.
However, that transition wasn’t just difficult; it was downright painful to watch. After infamously going 0-17 from three to start the season, his struggles continued throughout the month of January. Oubre was lacking confidence, shooting terribly, and was having a difficult time adjusting to playing alongside Steph Curry. The Warriors played the first few weeks of the season with the worst-rated starting lineup in the entire NBA, and Oubre was certainly one of the main reasons behind that. Fans began growing frustrated at the product they were watching on the court.
Steve Kerr, who puts an incredible amount of trust in his players, was determined to try and make Oubre fit. Early in the season, Kerr sounded like a broken record repeating that the lineup would get better with time as the players grew accustomed to playing with each other. It sure has taken some time, but the Warriors are starting to see Kerr’s prophecy being fulfilled.
The first glimpse that we got was his epic 40-point effort against the Mavericks in which he shot 7-10 from behind the arc. Some fans were quick to dismiss it as an anomaly. However, in nine games so far in February, Oubre is quietly averaging 19.2 points per game with 6.6 rebounds — all while shooting 46.3%(!) from three. To put that number in perspective, the scorching Curry is “only” shooting 45.5% from three in February. Granted, it’s a small sample size, but it does have him up to 31% for the season. That number isn’t amazing, but it’s enough to make opponents at least respect his range.
Not only has his shooting greatly improved, but he seems to be getting more accustomed to playing alongside Steph and Draymond Green. He is regaining his confidence on both ends of the floor, and is starting to fill the role that the Warriors brought him in to fill.
As we have seen so far this season, the brilliance of Steph Curry can only carry the Warriors so far. If they want to make the playoffs and have a shot to make a postseason run, they are going to need their secondary options to perform and take off some of the scoring load, and Oubre is starting to show signs that he could be up for that task. While he still has plenty more room to improve, if the positive trend continues, then Kelly Oubre Jr. could be exactly who the Warriors needed after all.