How Badly Are the Sixers Going to Miss Kelly Oubre?

How Much Will the Sixers Miss Kelly Oubre?

Kelly Oubre was struck by a car while walking in Center City on Saturday evening. The Sixers guard ended up spending a few hours in the hospital before being released late Saturday night. The team announced Oubre suffered a fractured rib as well as injuries to his hip and knee, they expect him to miss significant time but to be back sometime this season.

Oubre was the 15th overall pick in 2015 and has spent time with the Wizards, Suns, Warriors, and Hornets in his career before inking a one year $2.8 million deal this offseason with the Sixers.

The 27 year old was off to a great start and averaging over 16 points per game through the team’s first eight games. Oubre has been everything the Sixers have lacked in recent years, a solid bench player who can score.

For the first time in a few years, the Sixers are fun to watch again and Oubre was a big part of that. What happened to Oubre is certainly tragic and is in no way good news, but of all the years for something like this to happen to the team’s best bench player it would be this year. The Sixers have put together a solid bench thanks in part to the Harden trade and should be able to survive during Oubre’s absence.

After another second round exit last year and another offseason with drama surrounding one of the team’s star players, Sixers fans were losing interest quickly heading into the season. It should speak volumes to the brand of basketball that Nick Nurse’s team has played that it only took eight games for the fans to buy back in. It’s not an easy thing to do, but have faith in Nurse and the rest of the team that they will be fine.