A coined five-star prospect out of high school, Kelly Oubre averaged 9.3 points, 5.0 rebounds, 1.1 steals and shot 50% on two-pointers and 36% on three-pointers in just 21 minutes of action per game in his lone freshman season at Kansas. Per 40 minutes, that translates to 17.6 points, 9.5 rebounds, and 2.2 steals. The 6’7, 200 pound small forward is projected to be selected in the later part of the lottery, but has worked out with the Pistons on June 19 and the Denver Nuggets, who pick 7th. Now, let’s dive into our scouting report on the 19-year old.
Strengths
Oubre’s most ideal strengths stem from his excellent 7’1.5″ wingspan and fluid athleticism, which he uses to his advantage in nearly every aspect of the game.
Oubre uses his length to his advantage on the glass. He averaged 9.5 rebounds per 40 minutes, a solid mark for a small forward. With Andre Drummond, Ersan Ilyasova, and potentially Oubre, the Pistons would be a very dangerous rebounding team.
He’s solid in transition, which accounted for 24% of his offense, where he can handle the ball and hit 3s as the trail man. He uses his length to finish above the rim, often times dunking on opponents. Again, with Brandon Jennings, Reggie Jackson, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, and Oubre, the Pistons would be running the floor in transition at ease often.
While not a consistent shooter as we’ll touch on later, he has the fundamentals to be a great shooter in the NBA because of his smooth shooting stroke. He can be a viable option in the catch-and-shoot game right away, though not a great one. Spot-ups accounted for 26% of Oubre’s offense.
His most promising strength, however, is his defense. Oubre has all the tools to be an elite NBA defender, it’s just a matter of adding weight and time. He’s quick laterally, able to keep even the best offensive players in front of him. His length allows him to disrupt passing lanes and swipe steals at ease, averaging 2.2 steals per game per 40 minutes, and bother opposing jump shooters. Imagine him and Caldwell-Pope defending on the wings and racking up endless steals.
At just 19 years-old, he has plenty of upside and will continue to only get better.
Weaknesses
Oubre’s major overall weakness is the fact that he’s still very raw – arguably the rawest player in the draft. He struggles creating any sort of offense outside of shooting and transition at this point in his career.
He’s a very limited ball handler, and the ball slows him down. Oubre also plays the game too fast at times and attacks the basket with no plan. He needs to slow down and be more patient very often. He shot just 46.5% in the paint during his freshman season, and uses only his left hand.
Oubre also frequently pulls a Brandon Jennings, shooting a contested, off the dribble jump shot early in the shot clock. He’s very uncomfortable shooting off the dribble and forces up tough shots at times.
Averaging just 1.5 assists per 40 minutes, Oubre has very minimal passing skills, if that. He struggles to make the simple pass at times, and can be turnover prone.
Oubre is very inconsistent as well. You don’t know what you’re going to get from him every night. It could be 20 points, it could be 2. He’s a streaky shooter, and, like Brandon Jennings, when shots aren’t falling for him he tries to shoot his way out of the slump.
Fit with the Pistons
Oubre would be a solid fit with the Pistons. He’s by no means a starter yet in the NBA, and Stan Van Gundy seems set on acquiring a starting small forward via free agency or trade. Oubre can play 15-25 minutes a night, play solid defense, hit spot-up threes, and run the floor in transition and nothing more, and that’s all the Pistons need right now until he develops into a starter.
Career outlook
Oubre won’t contribute much right away in the NBA, probably only 4-8 points per game. I see him having a very similar path as Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, around 6 points his rookie season, but then develop into a double figure scorer and solid starter in the league. I see him eventually averaging around 15 points per game, 7 rebounds, and shoot around 40% from beyond the arc. Whether it will be for the Pistons or not remains unseen until draft day.
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