Kelly Oubre Jr. has played surprisingly well off Warriors bench

Ever since returning to the lineup after missing a few games with wrist soreness, Kelly Oubre Jr. has come off the bench. For the past three games, especially the past two, he’s found a home with the Warriors’ second unit.

Oubre Jr. came back and didn’t play his usual amount of minutes, scoring just nine points against the Sixers. Since that game, the guard has scored over 20 points against both the Wizards and Nuggets.

The Warriors, since getting Kelly Oubre Jr. back, are 2-1, and they’ve been helped by the young stud starting to dominant off the bench.

After that nine-point performance, Oubre Jr. put up 24 points against the Wizards. That was tied for his fifth-best scoring game of the season. Just two nights later, he put up 23 against the Nuggets which was tied for the eighth-best scoring performance of the season.

That’s just to say, Oubre Jr. is finding a home on the second unit, and it could be because he’s settling less. Oubre Jr. is getting to the bucket. He shot 12-for-22 from two-point range over the two-game stretch.

It’s also that, despite playing on the second unit, Oubre Jr. is still getting a hefty amount of minutes. He’s averaged over 34 minutes per game which is well above his season average, showing that he can still be in on closing units although he didn’t start.

Oubre Jr.’s time in Golden State wouldn’t necessarily be considered a success, but this new role may be what unlocks that potential. As the main scoring option on the second unit, he can use his playmaking to do more than camp at the three-point line and watch Stephen Curry do his thing.

Oubre Jr. went from averaging 18.7 points per game last season and is now at 15.5 per game. That’s not what you want to see from a 25-year-old that does have an ultra-high ceiling to his offensive game.

The Warriors bringing Oubre Jr. off that second unit could be the key, and it’ll be interesting to see if they continue that.

Kent Bazemore missed the team’s outing against Denver, but he’d been the starter. Mulder started against the Nuggets. Bazemore has thrived as the starter in Oubre Jr.’s absence and has shot over 50 percent from deep.

He’ll likely retain that position, and it could be the best of both worlds. While it doesn’t make them title contenders, it could help keep them in games after Curry’s initial offensive onslaught.