Atlantic Notes: Oubre, Poeltl, Anunoby, Knicks Bench

Kelly Oubre Jr. has proven himself too valuable for the Sixers to trade at the upcoming trade deadline, Keith Pompey writes for The Inquirer.

Oubre is on an expiring contract, but as the team looks more and more like a potential playoff threat, Pompey believes that what the 6’8″ wing brings in terms of role versatility and two-way play on the wings is not something that can be easily replaced.

Oubre has played shooting guard, small forward, and power forward for the Sixers this year, depending on who was healthy and in the rotation around him. He defends opposing teams’ best players and is knocking down 38.0% of his threes on the season.

“He plays both ends, right?” asked coach Nick Nurse. “I think that’s the main thing. He’s been pretty effective on both ends, and the other probably main thing is he’s in about his 10th year. He’s got a lot of stuff under his belt. A lot of minutes. A lot of games, too. That helps, too.”

Pompey writes that the only real benefit of moving Oubre would be salary cap relief, but that is a goal that should be pursued in the offseason, not in the midst of a season in which the team is hoping to make some noise in the playoffs.

We have more from around the Atlantic Division:

• Reports that Jakob Poeltl is considered out indefinitely with a lower back strain have put the Raptors in a very difficult position, according to TSN’s Josh Lewenberg (Twitter video link). Lewenberg reports that Toronto’s preference when it comes to the big man they have under contract until the 2029/30 season is to be patient, but the lack of progress in his recovery is the biggest wildcard when it comes to the Raptors’ trade deadline approach. Toronto has been linked to multiple high-level centers in this trade cycle, most recently Domantas Sabonis, but the question of how long it will take Poeltl to return to form hangs over all trade talks, as well as the Raptors’ long-term outlook.
• With Karl-Anthony Towns having fouled out on Saturday against the Sixers, Knicks coach Mike Brown tried something he had yet to try this season, putting OG Anunoby at the five as the primary defender on Joel Embiid. The new-look lineup sputtered at times, but delivered when it mattered, writes Newsday’s Steve Popper. “We can’t do anything like that if you don’t have a guy like OG,” Brown said. “OG allows us to play the basketball game in a lot of different ways. And so we were able to do it.” Anunoby had a critical trio of plays on the offensive end, slamming home a putback dunk, then hitting a three, then passing to Landry Shamet for a critical three. However, it was the other end of the floor that impressed Brown the most. “OG changed the game defensively,” Brown said. “And his quick decisions with the basketball, it was beautiful to watch. But defensively, guarding their power forward, guarding Paul George and then guarding Joel Embiid. He was phenomenal defensively.”
• Miles McBride and Shamet have established themselves as premier shooters in the NBA, but it’s their defense that’s proving indispensable for the Knicks, writes Jared Schwartz for the New York Post. Brown has repeatedly called out the pair of guards as the best point-of-attack defenders on the team, and that was put into practice in Saturday’s win against the Sixers, when McBride and Shamet closed the game over Mikal Bridges. “You don’t stop those types of guys [Maxey and Edgecombe], but to have a guy like Deuce coming off the bench, have a guy like Landry — both those guys are physical at the point of attack, whether those guys are trying to get over pick-and-rolls or trying to get over [dribble handoffs] or even pindowns,” Brown said. “And to have that type of relentless pursuit with athleticism and strength and toughness and the mindset is phenomenal. And obviously, we need those guys.”