Golden State Warriors: Increasingly likely Kelly Oubre will leave in FA

It’s hard for the Golden State Warriors to be upset about Kelly Oubre hitting his stride this season. Yet, his consistent improvements could lead to a big payday for the young guard – leaving the Dubs in murky water.

Reports are stating that some teams around the league could be interested in offering up to $20 million dollars a year for Oubre. This is a number that, even with the best cap crunching maneuvers in the book, the Dubs will not be able to match.

Even worse, Oubre leaving the Warriors in free agency would cause them to forfeit his payroll, rendering them with even less wiggle room to add talent in the offseason. In every facet, Oubre leaving at the end of the season would be a brutal blow.

Kelly Oubre’s development has been a blessing and a curse for the Golden State Warriors who might not be able to pay him enough to return.

Oubre’s camp feels he has done enough to earn a pay raise. And, in fairness, he has. Oubre is averaging 17.9 points on 37.0 percent shooting from the 3-point line since early February. He’s taken notable leaps towards becoming a 3-and-D threat that can help push a team to higher heights.

The Dubs have an obvious interest in keeping Oubre on the roster. Having him as a sixth man would put them in a great position to compete once Klay Thompson returns. According to the mentioned reports, there is mutual interest from Oubre’s camp in remaining in Golden State to battle for a title.

With the trade deadline just a day away, time is running short for the Oubre and the Dubs. Without some sort of confirmation or verbal commitment from Oubre – the front office would be best to find a deal in order to avoid losing him for nothing in the summer.

Of course, it’s not that simple. It’s not necessarily in Oubre’s best interests to commit this early and potentially miss out on a much-deserved pay raise. While the Dubs will consider swinging names like Bogdan Bogdanovic, Aaron Gordon and even Victor Oladipo – Golden State would be much happier being able to hold onto Oubre for at least one more season.