UPDATE: Nov. 19, 9:06 p.m. — The Warriors and Thunder are finalizing the deal to send Oubre to Golden State for a 2021 protected first-round pick, per Woj. The pick is top 20 protected. If it lands anywhere from 1-20, the Warriors will send two second-round picks instead.
The Golden State Warriors are closing in on a deal to land G/F Kelly Oubre Jr. from the Oklahoma City Thunder, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported late Thursday evening. Oubre had been acquired by the Thunder via the Chris Paul trade with the Suns a few days ago. OKC also dealt PG Ricky Rubio to the Timberwolves after getting him from Phoenix.
The plan is for the Warriors to use their trade exception of $17.2 million to absorb Oubre’s $14.4 million salary under the cap. A move from Golden State was expected after the unfortunate injury to SG Klay Thompson, who reportedly suffered a torn Achilles while working out in Southern California on Wednesday before the 2020 NBA Draft. The Warriors selected C James Wiseman with the No. 2 pick in the draft. Now, the Dubs are about to add a young wing player in Oubre, who had a breakout season for the Suns in 2019-20. Unfortunately for him, that season was cut short due to a torn meniscus.
With Oubre, the Warriors’ title hopes are somewhat back on the table. Oubre isn’t Thompson, but he’s a hell of a young player when healthy. Oubre brings solid defense on the wing and is a well-rounded offensive player. The Dubs starting lineup with Stephen Curry, Andrew Wiggins, Oubre, Draymond Green and potentially Wiseman would have a ton of size, something we aren’t used to seeing. Coach Steve Kerr will need to make some adjustments, but Golden State has depth to work with like it hasn’t had in the past.
Looking at the Warriors title odds will make your head spin. Golden State was 8/1 earlier in the day after the Thompson news broke. The Dubs dropped to 20/1 in light of the news. We should expect a bit of an upswing now that Oubre could be going to the Warriors. Again, Oubre isn’t Thompson. But we’ve seen Golden State win titles with less; their first two were when it was basically just the Splash Bros. and Dray with Harrison Barnes and Andre Iguodala. This Dubs team is actually pretty stacked now. You have that starting 5, plus Damion Lee, Jordan Poole, Eric Paschall and Kevon Looney coming off the bench. If everyone stays healthy, the Warriors will be contenders in the West.