Oubre shows worth; comeback falls short
With the game tied late in the third quarter Tuesday night, Warriors guard Kelly Oubre Jr. backed up his defender along the right wing before he took two hard dribbles into the key and, while drawing contact, lofted in a floater.
This foursecond sequence did more than give Golden State the lead; it provided the front office a reminder of his speed and quickness. In helping the Warriors overcome a 24point hole before they endured a 10898 loss to the 76ers at Chase Center, Oubre made a strong case — not just for Golden State to keep him beyond Thursday’s trade deadline, but for other teams to offer compelling packages for him.
With Stephen Curry still sidelined by a bruised tailbone, Oubre scored 13 of his 24 points during a thirdquarter surge in which the Warriors turned a 14point halftime deficit into a fivepoint lead. But the 76ers, who touched down in San Francisco winners of eight of their previous nine games and owners of the league’s secondbest record, strung together enough stops to retake the lead midway through the fourth quarter.
The Warriors hung close until Philadelphia used a 90
spurt to create distance down the stretch and pulled away for the win. This was an opportunity squandered for Golden State, but it still has reasons to feel optimistic.
What makes this season so odd is that the Warriors are trying to prioritize their youth movement — a necessity for longterm relevance — while also chasing a playoff berth. With Curry out the past three games, guard Jordan Poole, 21, has started at point guard. Center James Wiseman — at 19, perhaps the team’s most important young piece — supplanted Kevon Looney in the starting lineup Tuesday in a move that Golden State expects to last the season.
As could be expected, that newlook first unit struggled as the Warriors fell behind 3511 late in the first quarter. Then, just a couple of minutes before halftime, Golden State channeled the freeflowing style that was built for Curry. With players in nearconstant motion, the Warriors rode a 3815 blitz to their first lead of the game midway through the third quarter.
Golden State mined timely contributions along the way from Andrew Wiggins, Damion Lee and others, but perhaps no one’s performance was more significant than Oubre’s. Over the past three months, as he acclimated to a new roster and blossomed into one of the Warriors’ more consistent players, he was the target of numerous trade rumors.
The reason was simple: A talented player on an expiring deal, Oubre is an enviable asset for any playoff contender in need of another athletic wing. It has been tricky to gauge, however, whether the Warriors are interested in trying to bring him back in free agency this summer.
To do so, the team with the NBA’s biggest payroll would probably need to pay around $20 million annually — a sizable sum given their massive luxurytax bill. But Oubre, if he’s willing, could be the ideal sixth man next season once Klay Thompson returns.
That sequence late in the third quarter Tuesday underscored as much.