Philadelphia 76ers have signed Kelly Oubre Jr., the team announced Tuesday.
According to reports, it’s a one-year deal.
In a related move, the team has waived Marcus Bagley.
Last season, Oubre Jr. after averaged a career-high 20.3 points (43.1% FG, 31.9% 3FG), 5.2 rebounds, and 1.1 assists in 48 games (40 starts) with Charlotte. In addition, the eight-year veteran had a career-best 1.4 steals in 2022-23.
In 527 career NBA games with Washington, Phoenix, Golden State, and Charlotte, Oubre Jr. has averaged 12.8 points on 43.4% shooting (33.0% 3FG), 4.4 rebounds, 1.0 assist, and 1.0 steal.
The 27-year-old has produced at least 15.0 points in each of his last five seasons dating back to 2018-19, while tallying back-to-back seasons with at least 100 three-pointers and 50 steals.
This is a solid acquisition for the 76ers. You get a guy who can score the basketball off the bench. Oubre is athletic, solid shooter, and good enough defender. He will help the Sixers in 2023-24.
The Cavs(44-27) concluded their four-game road trip in Charlotte against the Hornets on Tuesday. Cleveland defeated the Hornets 114-108 on Sunday night and hoped to sweep the two-game set.
Cleveland was without their leading scorer Donovan Mitchell(Finger Sprain – Injury Management) and Jarrett Allen(Eye), but that didn’t matter as they had three players score 20-plus points in a 120-104 rout of the Hornets.
The Cavs went 3-1 on their road trip and have won two straight and five of their last six. Even more, they matched their win total from last season(44-38).
Here’s the Great, Not So Great, and the Bottom Line of the Cavs’ win over Charlotte.
The Great:
Evan Mobley, who started his straight game at center for the injured Allen, had a team-high 26 points(10/15 FG) and six rebounds.
Cedi Osman was huge off the Cavs’ bench. He scored 12 of his 24 points in the second quarter, and Osman made six threes. Early In the second quarter, with the Cavs leading 32-31, Osman scored eight of the team’s next 10 points to give the team an 11-point.
Caris LeVert got the start for Mitchell, and he did the job. LeVert had 22 points(four threes), four rebounds, seven assists, and four steals.
Darius Garland scored 12 of 19 points in the first quarter and added seven assists. He got the Cavs off to the start they needed.
Second and Third Quarters: Cleveland led 30-27 after the first quarter but blew things open in the second and third quarters. The Cavs outscored the Hornets 68-49 in those quarters. Cleveland shot 50% in the second and 67% in the third. The Cavs led 98-76 at the end of three and had their largest lead of 26 points in the fourth.
Turnovers: The Cavs forced 22 turnovers, which led to 35 points. Cleveland forced 15 turnovers in the first half, which led to 25 points, and that’s the most they had in any half since 2008.
That’s a lot of turnovers and a lot of points.
Not So Great:
It’s all good, and it’s all great for the Cavs.
Bottom Line:
The Cavs did what they were supposed to do in these two games against the Hornets. It’s also impressive that they reached their win total from last season(44) with 11 games left, which was expected.
If Cleveland can win six of their final 11, they will win 50 games for the first time since the 2017-18 season, which would be a great accomplishment.
At this point, the focus is on seeding in the East. As stated numerous times, Cleveland is locked into the four seed. They are three games ahead of the fifth-seeded Knicks and three games behind the third-seeded 76ers, so again, barring anything crazy, Cleveland will have homecourt advantage in the first round of the playoffs as the fourth seed in the East.
What’s Next:
Cleveland returns home to battle the 76ers on Wednesday night.
Best of the Rest:
Kelly Oubre Jr. had a game-high 28 points for the Hornets, and Terry Rozier added 22 points and nine assists.
-Cavs head coach J.B. Bickerstaff recorded his 200th win on Tuesday night.
The Cleveland Cavaliers(9-6) got back at it on Friday night, hoping to snap a five-game losing streak as they battled the Charlotte Hornets(4-13).
Cleveland had four players score 20-plus points as they defeated Charlotte 132-122 in double overtime at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.
Here’s the Great, Not So Great, and the Bottom Line of the Cavs’ win over the Hornets.
Great:
Darius Garland made big shots in both overtimes for the Cavs. In a career-high 48 minutes, Garland(16/28 FG) had a game-high 41 points, six assists, and a career-high five steals. In the first overtime, with the Cavs trailing 117-114 with under a minute to go, Garland hit a three to tie the game, and when the Hornets took a 120-117 with 22.5 seconds to go, Garland would make another three with 13.5 seconds to send the game into double overtime. He had 13 of the team’s 27 points in the two overtime periods.
Donovan Mitchell had 34 points and six assists. The Cavs backcourt combined for 75 points; Mitchell and Garland also combined for 20 of the team’s 27 points in the overtime periods.
Evan Mobley was sensational on Friday night. He had 21 points, a career-high 18 rebounds, five assists, two blocks, and a steal. According to the Cavs, Mobley became the ninth player in team history to have 20-plus points, 15-plus rebounds, five-plus assists, two-plus blocks, and one-plus steal in a game. In fact, Mobley and Jarrett Allen(20 points, 12 rebounds, four blocks) combined for 41 points, 30 rebounds, and six blocks.
Second OT: The Cavs blew the lead at the end of the fourth and almost lost it in the first overtime, but they took control in the second OT. After Kelly Oubre Jr. made a running hook to give the Hornets a 122-120 lead with 4:38 to go, the Cavs closed the show on a 12-0 run. Charlotte did not score the rest of the way and shot 1/10 from the field in that period.
Not So Great
The Final 52.4 seconds in Regulation: After two Mitchell free throws made the score 103-93, things got a little haywire for the Cavs. Charlotte closed the game on a 12-2 run to send it to OT after a Terry Rozier three with 01.1 seconds to go. During that stretch, the Cavs turned the ball over two times.
Turnovers: Cleveland had a season-high 20 turnovers on Friday night, leading to 35 points for the Hornets, which almost cost them in this game. Fortunately, Garland and Mitchell bailed them out in OT.
Bottom Line:
This would have been a terrible loss for the Cavs. The Hornets were without LaMelo Ball, and Cleveland had what seemed like an insurmountable lead late in the game. Hopefully, they will learn from this and figure it out going forward.
What’s Next:
Cavs will battle the Heat on Sunday night at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.
Best of the Rest:
Oubre Jr. led the Hornets with 34 points; Rozier and P.j. Washington added 28 points apiece. Washington also added 10 rebounds.
With the win, Cleveland moves to 4-0 in overtime games this season.
