Kelly Oubre was expected to miss a considerable amount of time following the off-court injury he sustained earlier this month, according to the Philadelphia 76ers. The story took a turn after Oubre was officially diagnosed with a fractured rib.
Although Oubre’s return was not officially scheduled by the Sixers, a reevaluation was scheduled for him within a week of the diagnosis. At the beginning of his recuperation, the veteran wing was allowed to take part in a few light workouts at the practice facility.
The Sixers had Oubre back on the court and doing individual workouts last week. Given his inability to take part in contact drills, Oubre was given an additional week to prepare before being reevaluated. While discussing the severity of Oubre’s injury, Sixers head coach Nick Nurse hinted that Oubre might make a comeback later this week.
Nurse made a suggestion that Oubre would not be back in the starting lineup for several days prior to Monday night’s resounding victory over the Los Angeles Lakers. Thankfully, the veteran was present for the team this week and, based on reports, even took part in limited practice on Tuesday.
Will the New Orleans Pelicans give him the go-ahead to play? The nurse was certain that wouldn’t happen. He won’t rule out playing against the Boston Celtics on Friday.
The last time Oubre played was in the Sixers’ game against the Detroit Pistons on November 10. He was playing in his eighth consecutive game at the time, making his fifth start for the 76ers. Oubre made just nine shot attempts in 26 minutes of action. He pulled down eight rebounds in addition to scoring eight points, making it one of his less prolific nights.
The victory over the Lakers on Monday was Oubre’s ninth straight game without a field goal. The Sixers are obviously patient with the veteran wing’s timeline, even though they could use his added boost. Before his setback, the wing was excelling in his role.
It is highly likely that Oubre will return to the floor sooner rather than later. As Nurse mentioned last week, the hope is that he returns within days of his second re-evaluation. The extended timeline shouldn’t go too far if not.