After averaging a career-high 20.3 points per game with the Charlotte Hornets last season, Oubre is on a veteran's minimum contract and trying to prove he can contribute to a contender.
Philadelphia 76ers player Kelly Oubre Jr. poses during media day at the Sixers practice facility in Camden, NJ on Monday, Oct. 2, 2023.Kelly Oubre Jr. retreated to his Charlotte home during the offseason. He needed a physical and mental break from basketball, other than his daily cardio workouts. He wanted to spend time with his wife and two young children. And he made a point to stay off social media, or any outlet “that could potentially raise my heart rate.
Now on a roster featuring back-to-back scoring leader Joel Embiid, Oubre’s expected role here is as a high-energy defender who is capable of providing complementary offensive punch. That potential was on display during Wednesday’s preseason loss to the Boston Celtics played without Embiid and James Harden, when Oubre“It’s something that I think is bigger than me,” Oubre said of his opportunity with the Sixers.
He has not appeared in the playoffs since 2017 and 2018 with the Wizards, his second and third NBA seasons. He was part of the return package of the Chris Paul blockbuster trade to Phoenix just before the start of the 2020-21 season, which immediately propelled the Suns to the NBA Finals. Then, Oubre was on a Warriors roster that lost in the 2021 play-in tournament, before winning the championship the following season.
“This is a team that has a lot of pieces,” Oubre said. “You have guys who can give 20-30 any given night. I’m one of them, and I know that. It will sting not being able to really flourish on both sides of the floor. But, at the end of the day, I know that I can bring a bigger piece of myself to this team and help this team win and go further than me scoring 20 points every game.
That dynamicism is why Nurse said the Sixers first talked about pursuing Oubre shortly after free agency began in early July. As the process lingered, Oubre fired agent Torrel Harris but took responsibility for his “sub-par” communication because “I needed to figure myself out. I needed to be whole, so that I could bring my all.”
That contract did not come with any playing-time guarantees, Nurse and Oubre said. He is competing at that spot with Danuel House Jr. and Green, who both have more experience with the Sixers’ current core. Oubre said he has purposefully held a quiet demeanor while navigating his new locker-room surroundings, but has been taking note of how teammates such as Maxey, Harris and De’Anthony Melton operate on and off the floor.
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