The Golden State Warriors made a calculated decision in the offseason to acquire Kelly Oubre Jr. The rationale was clear: with Klay Thompson out for the year, the team needed to pair Stephen Curry with a second credible scorer.
Unfortunately, the Warriors’ bet didn’t quite pay off. Although he has been playing better as of late, Oubre’s stats this year are still pretty rough. Through 20 games he is averaging 12 points per game (his worst figure in 5 years) on 37.2 percent shooting from the field (career worst) and 22.8 percent from beyond the arc (career worst).
A year that started off with a model exposing his bedroom secrets hasn’t gotten much better since for Oubre.
Not quite the productivity Golden State was hoping for when the organization agreed to invest $82 million in bringing him onboard.
Naturally, due to the disappointing returns Oubre has produced, he has begun to be mentioned in various trade scenarios.
This week, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr weighed in all the trade chatter surrounding his player.
“I think it’s important for guys to accept it because in the modern life that we live there’s just going to be constant scrutiny and judgment and rumors and all kinds of stuff,” he said on 95.7 The Game’s “Damon, Ratto & Kolsky” show.
Karl-Anthony Towns’ reaction to Jordyn Woods’ Buss It video speaks for itself.
— Game 7 (@game7__) January 26, 2021
“But I did feel compelled to tell everybody exactly what happened, which was, somebody called us, there wasn’t even an offer made and all of a sudden, it’s on the internet. So that stuff is frustrating when it happens.”
With Oubre not providing the sort of returns Golden State was hoping for, the trade speculation makes a ton of sense. That said, it’s hard to see a scenario where anyone gives the Warriors anything of substance in a trade – so Oubre likely isn’t going anywhere any time soon.
Related: Lonzo Ball’s Gets Very Honest About Pelicans Trading Him
Charles Kruger has been credentialed to cover two Super Bowls, four NBA Finals, and one World Series. A 20-year veteran in the sports world, he has sources spanning the NBA, MLB, NFL, UFC and NASCAR. Currently residing in Los Angeles, Calif., he is Game 7’s go-to source for rumors surrounding the Lakers, Clippers and Dodgers.
