Kelly Oubre Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Southeast Notes: Magic, Bol, Harris, Hawks, Oubre

February 11th, 2022 at 2:39pm CST by Luke Adams

According to president of basketball operations Jeff Weltman, the Magic‘s relatively quiet deadline wasn’t for lack of trying.

“We’re always aggressive, but sometimes aggressiveness doesn’t equal activity,” he said, per Khobi Price of The Orlando Sentinel.

In their lone move, the Magic acquired PJ Dozier and Bol Bol from Boston. They’ve already waived Dozier, who is out for the season with a torn ACL. Bol is recovering from foot surgery and may not be back this season either, but Weltman said the team is intrigued by the young big man and has yet to make a decision on him.

“We’ll have to get our people to get to know him and understand his situation,” Weltman said. “It’s around that timeline — about the end of the season — but I’m really not sure. When we get back from the trip, we’ll get him in here and get an understanding of what he’s dealing with and how far along he is.”

Here’s more from around the Southeast:

Magic wing Gary Harris isn’t a lock to be bought out in the coming days or weeks, tweets Keith Smith of Spotrac. As a veteran on a rebuilding team with a big contract, Harris is a logical buyout candidate, but Smith hears that the team likes how he has helped its young guards. Orlando is also dealing with some injuries in the backcourt.
Hawks general manager Travis Schlenk wasn’t eager to shake up his roster after seeing how well the team has played since the Cam Reddish trade, he said on Friday. “Our last 12 games, we’re 9-3, so we feel good about the impact that (trade) had,” Schlenk said (Twitter links via Sarah K. Spencer of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution). “Kind of have a set rotation now of guys, kind of know their roles. We looked at a lot of different stuff, but we’re comfortable with this group.” Schlenk added that the Hawks made a strong second half run last season: “We want to give them that opportunity to prove it to the world they can do it again.”
The Hawks have an open spot on their 15-man roster following the trade deadline, but aren’t targeting any specific types of players, according to Schlenk, who said the priority will be not to mess with the team’s chemistry. “We’ll look to see who’s out there, whether we look at young guys to bring in on 10-days, or whether there’s a veteran that becomes available that we feel like would fit in,” he said, per Spencer (Twitter link).
Hornets forward Kelly Oubre was fined $15K on Wednesday for violating league rules prohibiting the use of profane language directed toward the spectator stands, the league announced (via Twitter). The incident in question took place in Charlotte during the second quarter of Monday’s game vs. Toronto.

COVID-19 Updates: Grizzlies, Doumbouya, Oubre, Pistons, More

January 19th, 2022 at 9:42am CST by Luke Adams

The Grizzlies now have a league-high four players in the NBA’s health and safety protocols. When they updated their injury report on Tuesday for Wednesday’s game vs. Milwaukee, the Grizzlies removed Yves Pons from the protocols, but added key contributors Kyle Anderson and Desmond Bane (Twitter link). Big man Killian Tillie also remains in the protocols for Memphis, and point guard Tyus Jones was added today (Twitter link).

While the Grizzlies shouldn’t have to wait too long to get some of their players back from the protocols, they’ll likely be shorthanded on the wing for their next few games, with Anderson and Bane both unavailable and Dillon Brooks (ankle) still on the shelf too.

Here are a few more protocol-related updates:

Lakers two-way forward Sekou Doumbouya entered the COVID-19 protocols on Tuesday, according to the team (Twitter link via Kyle Goon of the Southern California News Group). Doumbouya had been in the G League with South Bay, so his absence won’t have a major impact on the NBA club.
Hornets forward Kelly Oubre and Pistons guard Frank Jackson are among the players to have exited the protocols this week, according to their respective teams (Twitter links). Jackson missed Tuesday’s game vs. Golden State due to reconditioning, while Oubre is listed as questionable for Wednesday’s contest in Boston.
Pistons rookie Luka Garza, who was on a G League assignment, had his status changed to “health and safety protocols” on Tuesday night’s injury report. Meanwhile, this morning’s injury reports no longer list Jazz guard Jared Butler or Kings wing Robert Woodard, an indication that both players have cleared the protocols.
Magic head coach Jamahl Mosley and top assistant Nate Tibbetts both entered the protocols on Monday, resulting in assistant Jesse Mermuys taking over on a temporary basis as Orlando’s acting head coach, per the team (Twitter link).

COVID-19 Updates: Oubre, Casey, Satoransky, Garuba, More

January 10th, 2022 at 4:01pm CST by Luke Adams

Hornets forward Kelly Oubre has entered the NBA’s health and safety protocols, the team announced today (via Twitter). Oubre will miss the team’s Monday night game vs. Milwaukee and will likely be sidelined longer than that unless he registered a false positive or inconclusive test. There are now two Charlotte players in the protocols, with Oubre joining Vernon Carey.

Here are more protocol-related updates from around the NBA:

Pistons head coach Dwane Casey has entered the protocols and will be replaced in the short term by assistant Rex Kalamian, tweets Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press. Half of the NBA’s 30 head coaches have now been placed in the protocols at some point this season.
Pelicans guard Tomas Satoransky has cleared the health and safety protocols and was back with the team today, according to Andrew Lopez of ESPN (Twitter link).
Rockets rookie Usman Garuba has exited the COVID-19 protocols and is no longer listed on the team’s injury report, tweets Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle.
Raptors forward Yuta Watanabe and Heat two-way player Marcus Garrett are among the other players who have cleared the protocols, per Blake Murphy of Sportsnet.ca and Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald, respectively (Twitter links).
The Bucks are listing Pat Connaughton as questionable to play on Monday night and he posted an emoji of a plane today on Twitter, strongly signaling that he has exited the protocols and is flying to meet the team in Charlotte, as Jim Owczarski of The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel notes (via Twitter). Whether or not Connaughton is available tonight, it sounds like he’s no longer in the protocols.

Southeast Notes: Oubre, Butler, Unseld, Capela

November 11th, 2021 at 4:00pm CST by Luke Adams

A few months before he reached free agency earlier this year, Kelly Oubre strongly suggested that he wanted to be a starter, telling reporters, “I can offer a lot more than coming off the bench.” However, he has been willing to accept a bench role with the Hornets so far, having started just five of 13 games for the team to open the season. On Wednesday, his reserve role put him in position for a historic performance — his 37 points off the bench represented a new franchise record for most points in a game by a non-starter, per Sam Perley of Hornets.com.

Here’s more from around the Southeast:

As first reported by Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports, Heat star Jimmy Butler will miss Thursday’s game vs. the Clippers due to his right ankle sprain. It remains unclear whether the injury will keep Butler out of action for multiple contests.
Count Montrezl Harrell among those who believe the Wizards hit a home run by hiring Wes Unseld Jr. as their new head coach this offseason. “I think it was just a great job picking the right head coach, man,” Harrell said, per Ava Wallace of The Washington Post. “As you can see, it’s resulted in our play.” Washington is tied for the East’s best record at 8-3 and the team has the fourth-best defensive rating in the NBA.
One reason for the Hawks‘ slow start to this season has been Clint Capela‘s inability to be the sort of two-way impact player he was last season, writes Chris Kirschner of The Athletic. Capela tells Kirschner that he’s still working his way back to 100% after dealing with a lingering Achilles issue. The veteran center was limited during training camp and head coach Nate McMillan doesn’t believe his conditioning is where it would be if he had been fully healthy. “The fact that he didn’t really start running until he got to training camp set him back,” McMillan said. “He’s now trying to play himself into game shape with the season starting.”

Southeast Notes: Oubre, Carter, Hachimura, Johnson

November 5th, 2021 at 5:38pm CST by Rory Maher

The Hornets lost handily to the Warriors in Kelly Oubre‘s first trip back to the Chase Center, 114-92. He says it was strange to be back in the arena on an opposing team, but is happy with how he’s fit in thus far with the Hornets, writes Roderick Boone of The Charlotte Observer.

“It’s definitely weird being on the opposite side of the arena,” Oubre told Boone. “But at the end of the day, man, we are in the moment. So I’m really happy to be able to go against these guys and just get the jitters out for myself. It’s always weird when you go get comfortable somewhere and then you’re uprooted to another place where you have to become comfortable as well.”

Oubre signed a two-year, $24.6MM deal with Charlotte in free agency over the summer. The second year is partially guaranteed at $5MM. Oubre says his energetic play is a good match with the young Hornets.

“This is just a young, energetic group and we are just trying to figure this thing out,” Oubre said, per Boone. “We are all trying to become our best selves and we’re all trying to set up a culture with this team. And I’m just more so happy to be a part of the culture forming in this organization rather than being somewhere the culture is already formed, guys are pretty much older so they are relaxed in how they approach the game.

“And here it’s just more like, ‘Let’s get it. Let’s go. Let’s go to war, let’s have fun while doing this.’ So I’m just super excited and ecstatic to be on this team.”

Here’s more from the Southeast:

The young Magic are 2-7 to start the season. Fourth-year big man Wendell Carter Jr. knows it’s going to take time for the team to improve, writes Matt Murschel of The Orlando Sentinel. “Teams do not become great overnight,” Carter said. “It’s going to take time. It’s going to take a lot of time.”
Wizards forward Rui Hachimura is back with the team, but there’s still uncertainty about when he’ll rejoin the lineup. Coach Wes Unseld Jr. said that he tentatively expects Hachimura back “sooner rather than later,” according to Ava Wallace of The Washington Post. “I don’t have a timetable, but I would agree with [‘sooner rather than later’],” Unseld said on Thursday. “He’s been around more, he’s working out, so it’s good to have him in the building and be present.
Hawks rookie forward Jalen Johnson, the 20th overall pick of the 2021 draft, has been assigned to the College Park Skyhawks, Atlanta’s G League affiliate, tweets Chris Kirschner of The Athletic. Kirschner notes that two-way players Sharife Cooper and Skylar Mays were transferred to the Skyhawks as well.

Southeast Notes: Hawks, Hornets, Riley, Butler

October 31st, 2021 at 2:58pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The 3-3 Hawks have yet to recapture the momentum that propelled them to the Eastern Conference Finals last season, writes Chris Kirschner of The Athletic. With an intimidating schedule coming up in which Atlanta will play several 2021 playoff teams, Kirschner offers his thoughts on how the club can adjust.

While forwards Cam Reddish and John Collins have exhibited plenty of growth, other key Hawks players have struggled a bit. Point guard Trae Young is struggling to adjust to the league’s new free throw rules, while shooting guard Kevin Huerter is struggling to connect from deep.

There’s more out of the Southeast Division:

The Hornets have already enjoyed a promising start to the 2021/22 season, writes Roderick Boone of the Charlotte Observer. New additions Ish Smith and Kelly Oubre have fit in well thus far, with Oubre connecting on a solid 35.7% of his three-point looks. 2022 restricted free agent forward Miles Bridges has taken his scoring to borderline All-Star heights, and Boone is pegging his future contract in the $100MM vicinity. When it comes to perimeter depth, Boone observes that Cody Martin, Jalen McDaniels, and Nick Richards are also improving.
The hot start of the Heat has Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel wondering if team president Pat Riley has finally nailed the club’s supporting lineup around All-Stars Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo. The club has wholly recalibrated its frontcourt depth around Adebayo, and the early results have paid dividends thus far. The addition of former Raptors All-Star point guard Kyle Lowry has made a huge defensive impact on Miami, though his offense is struggling so far. Sixth man Tyler Herro also appears to have taken a leap in his third season.
Heat All-Star swingman Jimmy Butler has thrived alongside new addition Kyle Lowry. Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald wonders if Butler has been newly maximized as a player alongside the former six-time All-Star point guard.

Southeast Notes: Hunter, Ball, Oubre, Fultz

October 1st, 2021 at 9:59pm CST by Dana Gauruder

De’Andre Hunter is eager to show he can offer more to the Hawks this season, as he told Chris Kirschner of The Athletic. Hunter was limited by a knee injury last season, appearing in just 23 regular-season games and five postseason games. “I just want to show people that I got better,” Hunter said. “I’ve been working on my game as much as I can given the surgery. I want to show everyone I’m better this year.”

We have more from the Southeast Division:

Hornets coach James Borrego wants LaMelo Ball to becomes the team leader at both ends of the floor, Steve Reed of The Associated Press writes. “I want him to take the reins of this program,” Borrego said. “He’s the quarterback, the floor general and for us to take that next step he must run this team, not only on the offensive end but the defensive end as well.”
Forward Kelly Oubre was traded to Golden State last November and had to jump right into the rotation. He’s had more time to acclimate with the Hornets after signing a two-year, $26MM deal as a free agent in early August, Roderick Boone of the Charlotte Observer notes. “It makes a big difference,” Oubre said. “Me being able to to adjust, I didn’t really have that adjustment period last year because once I got traded I was right to work. So I’ve been here before the season, before training camp. And I’ve been blessed enough to have sit downs with coach, bonding time with the guys and pretty much just everybody getting on the same wavelength.”
The Magic have plenty of guard options on the roster and Markelle Fultz said it will take awhile to sort out how the pieces fit together, Chris Hays of The Orlando Sentinel writes. “It’s still early and I’m still trying to get a feel for everybody’s strengths and weaknesses, but as far as talent I think all of the guards here have talent,” Fultz said. “We have guys who can really score the ball, are very athletic, can compete, so I think that it’s all going to be a little bit of trial and error … of throwing different guys out there and seeing what works best. As far as what I’ve seen and how I feel, I think that all of us can play together.”

Southeast Notes: Hornets, Oubre, Dinwiddie, Lawson, Heat

August 11th, 2021 at 8:41am CST by Luke Adams

In the weeks leading up to free agency, the Hornets were said to be looking to add multiple centers to their roster and were linked to top free agents like Richaun Holmes and Nerlens Noel in addition to intriguing trade candidates like Myles Turner.

The Hornets ultimately took a quieter approach to addressing the center position, accommodating a salary-dump deal for Mason Plumlee and selecting Kai Jones with the 19th pick in the draft. As Steve Reed of The Associated Press writes, president of basketball operations Mitch Kupchak‘ comments to reporters on Tuesday suggested that Plumlee will probably be the starter in 2021/22 but isn’t necessarily a long-term solution.

“Our thought process was to get somebody that’s a veteran under a reasonable contract and also give these young guys a chance to grow a little bit, and maybe a year from now they’re going to be the guys that maybe we should’ve pursued this year in free agency,” Kupchak said.

As Reed notes, besides Jones, the Hornets also have young bigs like Vernon Carey and Nick Richards on the roster, so the team will be focused on developing all of them this season. In the interim, Charlotte was happy to play it safe by acquiring Plumlee rather than trying to make a big splash in free agency.

“Going into free agency, there are 30 teams and there were a couple of centers available, but you don’t know where you rank,” Kupchak said. “You don’t know what the marketplace is going to be like once free agency begins, so there’s a lot of uncertainty going in. … We felt we got somebody (Plumlee) with two years remaining who’s a proven veteran on a good financial contract.”

Here’s more from around the Southeast:

New Hornets forward Kelly Oubre said the team’s “youth” and “energy” drew him to Charlotte, as Rod Boone of SI.com relays. “We played against them last year on three different occasions and the way they played — the young guys, the athletic ability, the speed they play with, the way they share the basketball and shoot the basketball and then how they defend — it was fun,” Oubre said. “I’m telling you, even playing against them, it was fun to watch them play against other teams, scouting against them.”
Newly-signed Wizards guard Spencer Dinwiddie tells Fred Katz of The Athletic that it was excruciating waiting to see whether Washington’s sign-and-trade deal for him – which turned into a five-team trade – would ultimately come together. “They were terrible,” Dinwiddie said of the 48 hours he spent waiting. “They were terrible, because you gotta remember, this wasn’t just, ‘Oh, I’m going to the Wizards and we’re just figuring out the dollars. Is it 58 (million)? Is it 59? Is it 60?’ That wasn’t it. You had to get all these parties to agree, and if any of the parties say no, then the whole trade falls through. … I wasn’t just even relying on Brooklyn and the Wizards to negotiate. I was relying on five, six teams.”
Undrafted rookie guard A.J. Lawson has left the Heat‘s Summer League team to join the Hawks‘ SL roster, tweets Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. A report on draft night suggested that Lawson was expected to attend training camp with the Heat, but that no longer seems likely.

Hornets Notes: Oubre, I. Smith, Li. Ball, Summer League

August 8th, 2021 at 1:35pm CST by Luke Adams

Kelly Oubre‘s two-year deal with the Hornets, which was completed using cap space, is worth $12MM and $12.6MM in year two, tweets Keith Smith of Spotrac. That second year is only partially guaranteed for $5MM, however, so the agreement includes just $17MM in total guaranteed money.

Meanwhile, Ish Smith‘s two-year contract with the Hornets uses most of the club’s room exception, according to Smith (Twitter link). It starts at $4.5MM in 2021/22, while the $4.725MM salary for ’22/23 is non-guaranteed.

Here’s more on the Hornets:

LiAngelo Ball, who is playing for the Hornets’ Summer League team in Las Vegas, said he’s “very thankful” for the opportunity and isn’t taking it for granted, as Rod Boone of SI.com writes. Ball was supposed to play for Oklahoma City’s G League affiliate in March 2020 before the pandemic stopped the season. He impressed Charlotte’s brass while working out in the gym with his brother LaMelo Ball in recent months, Boone writes.
Ball’s performance in Las Vegas is one of a handful of Hornets Summer League storylines to watch, according to Jonathan M. Alexander of The Charlotte Observer, who says he’ll also be keeping an eye on James Bouknight‘s three-point shooting and how much time Kai Jones spends at center.
In case you missed it, the Hornets are still believed to be eyeing restricted free agent Lauri Markkanen, despite no longer having the cap room necessary to sign him to an offer sheet.

Southeast Notes: Bamba, Oubre, Gill, Wizards

August 7th, 2021 at 10:01pm CST by Arthur Hill

Mohamed Bamba won’t play for the Magic when Summer League starts on Sunday, but he’s practicing with his teammates in Las Vegas, writes Chris Hays of The Orlando Sentinel. The third-year center got a path to regular minutes for the first time in his career when Orlando unloaded its veteran centers last spring and turned the position over to Bamba and Wendell Carter Jr.

“For me it was no-brainer,” Bamba said of his decision to come to Las Vegas. “We got a new coach, new system, new guys and I just wanted to get well acclimated way before training camp.”

Jamahl Mosley, who has taken over as head coach, said this week that it was encouraging to see Bamba join the team on his own. Bamba said he’s looking forward to playing under Mosley.

“He’s made it clear that my presence (on the floor) is needed, is wanted and it’s just all about getting out there and putting in the right amount of work,” Bamba said. “Practicing with the team only helps the chemistry of the team. Coming out here … I had a choice, either to stay in Orlando and work with the coaches that didn’t come to Summer League or come here and add in these good deposits from the team.”

There’s more from the Southeast Division:

Free agent forward Kelly Oubre received offers from eight other teams before deciding to sign with the Hornets, tweets Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News. Oubre’s agent, Torrel Harris of Unique Sports International Management, says the Knicks, Lakers, Clippers, Bucks, Nuggets, Nets, Trail Blazers and Cavaliers all presented offers to Oubre.
Today marked the guarantee date for Wizards power forward Anthony Gill, tweets Fred Katz of The Athletic. Gill will make $1,517,981 in 2021/22, giving Washington 13 fully guaranteed contracts. That doesn’t include center Daniel Gafford, whose $1,782,621 won’t be guaranteed until the league-wide guarantee date of January 7.
Wizards Summer League players Cassius Winston, Issuf Sanon and Isaiah Todd have all been placed in the NBA’s health and safety protocols, according to Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington (Twitter link). Their replacements include former NBA players Cheick Diallo and Derrick Walton Jr. (Twitter link)