Nick Nurse Defends Kelly Oubre Jr. After 3-for-19 Start

nick nurse defended Kelly Oubre Jr. after the forward’s offense stalled against the Boston Celtics, pointing to the minutes Philadelphia still trusted him to play. Oubre has been in the middle of that trust despite making only 3 of 19 three-point attempts through five games.

Nurse Backs Oubre

The 76ers won Game 5 and kept their season alive, and Nurse used that result to stand behind Oubre’s role in the rotation. He said Oubre has given the team value on the “less glamorous end of the floor,” a nod to the work that has kept him on the court even while his shot has not landed.

Oubre has averaged more than 33 minutes a night in the first-round series. That workload has come while he has shot 15.8 percent from three-point range, averaged 9 points per outing and hit just 38.3 percent from the field overall.

Boston Matchups For Oubre

His task has not been simple. Oubre has been asked to guard Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, two of Boston’s top scorers, and that defensive work has been a major reason Philadelphia has kept him in heavy playoff minutes.

The offensive line, though, is hard to ignore. Through five games, his 3-for-19 mark from deep left the 76ers leaning on defense more than scoring from a player whose open-market future has already become part of Philadelphia’s larger roster question.

Philadelphia’s Rotation Pressure

That pressure is sharper because major roster turnover is expected with free agency looming. Oubre’s fate in the open market has been described as a vital decision for the 76ers, and he had been viewed as likely to stay in Philadelphia a couple of weeks earlier.

Game 5 bought the team more time, and it bought Oubre more room to keep selling the same case Nurse made for him: the shot has lagged, but the minutes have still been earned on defense against Boston’s best wings.