How the Charlotte Hornets new additions fit the team: Kelly Oubre
It was a bit of a surprise that the Hornets signed Oubre in free agency, as the Golden State Warriors couldn’t replace him and a few other teams, such as the San Antonio Spurs, were rumored to be interested earlier on. It was an even bigger surprise that he signed for a quite reasonable number.
The fact the Hornets got him will help shore up the offensive load after the departures of Graham and Monk. Oubre scored over 20 points on 13 separate occasions last season, including a 40 point performance vs Dallas.
While his scoring and dunks are something to get excited about, the most intriguing part of his game for the Hornets is his defensive skill. Oubre is a 6’8 wing who is the likely 6th man, due to his positional versatility he displayed in Golden State, playing a career-high 33% of his minutes at the 2-guard spot, courtesy of Basketball-Reference.
He is a top-notch defender that you throw on the best perimeter player that the opposing teams have. For us, it will allow Ball and Hayward to play off-ball on defense, playing to their strengths and conserving energy.
With Oubre in the fold, there are a variety of exciting lineups to play where the shortest player on the floor is 6’6 and one example would be Ball/Oubre/Hayward/Bridges/Washington. Expect to see our 6’8 athlete play all over the floor this year, including plenty of minutes at shooting guard.