Golden State Warriors: Analyzing Oubre/Wiggins’ growth

It didn’t happen overnight, but Kelly Oubre and Andrew Wiggins are beginning to show significant growth with the Golden State Warriors. The two are really coming into their own and hitting their strides as of late – and this development is going to pay dividends for the franchise for years to come.

Acquiring Wiggins and Oubre didn’t come at a small price. Indirectly, Wiggins was the result of losing Kevin Durant via sign-and-trade for D’Angelo Russell. While Oubre was a bit cheaper, the Dubs still gave up assets and took on an increased luxury tax to bring him to the Bay.

Thankfully, it seems the risk of trading for these two young stars is going to work out. Both have shown a willingness to improve and do everything they can to help win games.

The Golden State Warriors should be thrilled to see the development of both Kelly Oubre Jr. and Andrew Wiggins this season.

Oubre is the same age as Wiggins but never had the star potential the former No. 1 overall pick did. This left his ceiling much lower, though he has done a great job of filling in his role this season. Oubre is playing phenomenal defense, pushing the Dubs to a 102 Defensive Rating when he’s on the floor. In contrast, they fall 10 points when he is on the bench.

The only thing holding Oubre back now is his 3-point shooting. He is struggling to be a consistent threat but has found other ways to score. He’s averaging 14.3 points on 40.2 percent shooting from the floor in his last eight games with multiple nights of two or more 3-pointers.

It’s a good sign to see Wiggins taking on the challenge of being a more physical defender. He’s always had the tools to be a versatile threat and it seems playing next to Draymond Green has helped him be more active on this side of the floor.

His statistics don’t show much of a difference. In years prior, it was hard to explain why a 20 points per game scorer had no impact on his teams success. Now, with the same stats, his impact is much higher due to the energy he brings to each game.

Wiggins has recorded three games of 4+ blocks in Golden State, something he never did before joining the Dubs. He’s also picking smarter shots and falling into a more comfortable role as a tertiary scorer.

The development of Wiggins and Oubre has put the Dubs in a position to win for years to come. Let’s hope we see continued growth from these two.