Former KU wing Kelly Oubre Jr. officially signs with Joel Embiid’s Philadelphia 76ers
Former University of Kansas small forward Kelly Oubre Jr., who averaged a career-best 20.3 points a game with the NBA’s Charlotte Hornets in 2022-23, has signed a contract with the Philadelphia 76ers, Sixers President of Basketball Operations Daryl Morey announced on Wednesday.
The contract is believed to be a one-year deal for $2.9 million, which is the NBA veteran’s minimum salary for a player with eight years of service in the league.
Oubre, a 6-foot-7, 205-pound, 27-year-old New Orleans native, will join reigning league MVP Joel Embiid, another former KU one-and-done player, with the Sixers.
After playing for KU during the 2014-15 season, Oubre was selected No. 15 overall by Atlanta in the 2015 NBA Draft. His draft rights were sent to the Washington Wizards. He played for Washington, Phoenix, Golden State and. Charlotte during his first eight years in the league.
Oubre, who averages 12.8 points per game during his career, will join a Sixers team that has lost in the Eastern Conference Semifinals of the NBA playoffs in all of the last three seasons. Led by the 29-year-old Embiid, the Sixers in 2022-23 earned the third seed in the Eastern Conference with a 54-28 record. Philly swept Brooklyn in the first round of the playoffs before losing to Boston in seven games in Round 2.
Oubre in 2014-15 played in all 36 games (27 starts) for the Big 12 regular-season champion Jayhawks. He earned honorable mention all-league honors for KU (27-9, 13-5 Big 12) after averaging 9.3 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 1.1 steals in 21.0 minutes per game.
Oubre, according to ESPN.com, “could get significant opportunity on the wing with the uncertainty around James Harden, who has requested a trade out of Philadelphia. The Sixers also lost Georges Niang, Jalen McDaniels and Shake Milton in free agency, meaning Oubre has a chance to walk into a lot of minutes, and a really significant scoring role, off the bench.”
Oubre “brings a much-needed level of athleticism at the wing not seen since Jimmy Butler,” wrote Zach Ciavolella of phillysportsnetwork.com. “Oubre could either start alongside some combination of De’Anthony Melton, Tobias Harris, and PJ Tucker with Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey as the mainstays or play a reserve role as a scoring spark off the bench.”
Will Embiid play in Olympics?
The other question surrounding Embiid and Oubre’s 76ers is away from the NBA.
Embiid, last year’s NBA MVP, is eligible to play for the United States, France and Cameroon in the 2024 Paris Olympics. He has been given a deadline of Oct. 10 to decide if he wants to play for France.
French basketball president Jean-Pierre Siutat made this declaration on French Radio’s “Stephen Time Show.”
“It will happen very quickly in all cases. We may have an answer by October 10. We have set this deadline,” Siutat said. “We never communicated anything official about Joel Embiid. There was buzz created from everywhere, and I repeat that I want him to come. However, we made no communication about the fact that he was with us. Today, he is still not with us.
“... We are working on it. We have a firm desire to do it. He knows it. We had the opportunity to discuss it with him and we are awaiting a decision. The American team is very interested in the idea of having him. Cameroon is qualified for the pre-Olympics. It’s a delicate situation for him,” added Siutat, his comments printed in an article at CBSsports.com.
Ex-Jayhawk Embiid has citizenship in France and the USA. His home country is Cameroon. He has yet to play in an Olympics.
