The Rise of Kelly Oubre: Peaking in Year 10
Although this year will likely go down as another one that wasted Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey’s prime, a shining light in the corner of the dark, musty basement that is the current version of the Philadelphia 76ers has been Kelly Oubre Jr. suddenly having his best season ever after a decade in the NBA
Yes, the story of this year has basically been Joel Embiid and Paul George’s health (or lack thereof), combined with the team’s overall injury bug and paying George $200 million in guaranteed money to be mind-blowingly ineffective.
Instead of focusing on the gulag that Daryl Morey, the 76ers medical staff, and Paul George have locked this team away in, something worth highlighting that could impact future potentially successful seasons is the fact that Kelly Oubre Jr. is quietly having possibly the best year of his career on both ends of the floor.
While sometimes other Sixers are standing around or passing when they should drive or shoot, Oubre has no problem being an aggressive scorer and picking up the offensive slack, in addition to following Maxey’s lead when it comes to jumping passing routes and fighting for steals.
Cut Scoring Impact/75
1. Evan Mobley
2. Luke Kornet
3. Rui Hachimura
4. Giannis Antetokounmpo
5. Daniel Gafford
6. Mark Williams
7. Jonathan Isaac
8. Ivica Zubac
9. Michael Porter Jr.
10. Kelly Oubre Jr.— BBall Index (@The_BBall_Index) February 16, 2025
Oubre’s effectiveness shows up on film and on the stat sheet, and 76ers coaches know and have been rewarding him by playing him the most minutes of his career so far, and the most minutes per game since 2019.
Right now Oubre is averaging:
- 34.7 minutes per game (career-high)
- 46.5% from the field (career-high, 14th among SGs)
- 6.5 rebounds per game (career-high, 4th among SGs)
- 1.8 assists per game (career-high)
- 1.5 steals per game (career-high, 5th among SGs and 18th among all positions)
Besides ranking among the top-20 players in the NBA in steals, Oubre is also using his length phenomenally well while often perfectly timing his jumps to stuff opponents’ shots and ranks 17th in terms of SGs when it comes to blocks (according to ESPN).
Oubre has been remarkably efficient this season inside the three-point line with floaters, creative finishes, and mid-range jumpers which has been nothing short of a life raft from a scoring perspective for an often drowning and depleted 76ers lineup most nights.
Oubre is currently averaging 4.4 two-point FGs per game (3rd-highest of his career, 9th among SFs, which Basketball Reference classifies him as) in addition to shooting 55.4% on two-point attempts (2nd-highest of his career, 10th among SFs).
Oubre’s ability to carve through a defense with elite acceleration, speed, and lift has been much needed for a Sixers team devoid of scoring talent on many nights, and today Oubre is averaging the 12th-most field goals made inside the restricted area per game when it comes to this year’s guards.
He also has 10 triple doubles, the fourth-most among shooting guards this season and the 40th-most in the NBA across all positions (per ESPN).
His tenacity when it comes to breaking up passes is second on the Sixers to only Maxey, and it’s worth noting Oubre has accrued the most steals in a single game this season as he once stole the ball eight times in a single game.
Equally important is Oubre’s ability to find the wide-open spots in the opposing defense, which comes in handy often, especially while Maxey frequently plays iso ball or takes the ball up the court and garners most of the defensive attention.
Moreover, Maxey and Oubre have a unique offensive chemistry too, often resulting in soaring slams like this one.
Chemistry with arguably the most talented player currently on the team (RIP prime Embiid) is critical for scoring and ultimately winning, especially in the modern NBA where we see a ton of isolation play, outside shooting, and offenses completely run by stars.
Oubre’s affinity for creating wide-open looks for himself is a major factor contributing to his currently career-high field goal percentage. His decisiveness when he gets those looks is equally important.
His awareness and angles on his cuts can carve up defenses, and helps other playmakers like Maxey easily dish it to the open Oubre.
Today Oubre sits at 17th in the NBA in points per possession on cuts. For context that is a statistic that it is arguably nice to rank high in, as evidenced by Tyrese Maxey and Jokic ranking inside the top-10 among other established stars.
Likewise, Oubre ranks 25th across all positions in scoring frequency on cut plays as well (per NBA.com).
Another clip of something Oubre has been phenomenal at which has led to his career-high FG% this year: finding the open space while Maxey is playing iso or taking the ball up.His decisiveness has been key for turning opportunities like these into buckets 🪣 #Sixers | #NBAsky
— Vote The Process (@votetheprocess.bsky.social) 2025-02-18T00:22:01.466Z
When it comes to his tenacity on the defensive end, hustle is an understatement.
Oubre jumps opponents’ passes like he’s Reed Blankenship and they’re Patrick Mahomes (18th in the NBA in steals per game), and right now Oubre is second in the NBA in deflections per game and total deflections.
Oubre doesn’t just bat balls away either as he does a phenomenal job of using exception body control and awareness to force frequent turnovers and has the fourth-highest steal percentage among SFs (25th overall).
Oubre’s active, quick hands mixed with instincts developed over a decade in the NBA allows him to frequently rip or poke balls away from opposing drivers and prevent points.
He’s also helping the 76ers direly in one of their most-lacking areas in recent disappointing playoff exits: defensive rebounds. Right now Oubre boasts the eight-best defensive rebound percentage among SFs (according to Basketball Reference).
Kelly Oubre this season:
🏀 2nd in the #NBA in deflections per game
🏀 18th in STLs per gameHustle is an understatement. #Sixers pic.twitter.com/j8VZ0RBRkX
— Vote The Process (@VoteTheProcess) February 19, 2025
Will any of this matter in 2025?
Probably not given how the season has gone and considering the fact that two of their three most highly-paid assets have currently depressing health prospects.
But in the face of this Sixers season likely going down as a wash, what fans and the front office must take away from the year are evaluations regarding talent level and fit. Oubre has shown through his own play and his chemistry with Maxey that the 76ers need to be thinking about doing one of two things with him.
Either, Philadelphia needs to hold on to Oubre next season due to his inside scoring potential and affinity for steals and rebounds and accept who he is as a player (we can all admit he’s had blatant lapses in seemingly basic basketball IQ at times), or Philly needs negotiate for fair trade value to get a future piece or pick in exchange for a player who is statistically having the best season of his career in a number of categories.
Regardless of what the Sixers’ front office decides to do with Oubre, he’s been fun to watch this season and has probably at least earned himself a pay day somewhere else thanks to his career-high field goal percentage combined with his addiction to creating turnovers.
Throw in his rebounding and scoring presence down low, and it’s easy to see why the wily veteran has stuck around the league for a decade.
