Oubre injury news makes Warriors play-in scenarios trickier

Will the Warriors have enough firepower to force their way into the tournament?

May 2, 2021

The Kelly Oubre Jr. injury news dampened the victory afterglow from the Golden State Warriors’ 113-87 win over the Houston Rockets.

Shams Charania @ShamsCharania

Oubre will have further evaluations on his wrist to determine whether he can continue playing through the injury, sources said. Oubre is averaging 15.4 points and six rebounds per game this season.

Shams Charania @ShamsCharania

Warriors’ Kelly Oubre Jr. has a torn ligament in his left wrist and a fracture on the palm, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium. Oubre reaggravated his wrist on April 9, missed 11 days and returned for five games, attempting to play through the injury and compete on the floor.

Oubre’s defensive versatility and physicality would be a huge help for a desperate Warriors squad looking to scrape their way into the playoffs. If he’s unable to contribute for the rest of the season with his torn wrist ligaments and palm fracture, Golden State’s tattered depth chart will be stripped even further.

Antonin @antonin_org

Klay (twice), KD, Steph, Oubre, Wiseman, Chriss, Looney, Cousins... so many long-term injuries for the Warriors the past 2 years.

I’m mulling over play-in scenarios here. If anyone’s still unsure how it works, here’s the rules from the NBA’s FAQ:

At the conclusion of the regular season but before the first round of the playoffs, the team with the 7th-highest winning percentage in each conference will host the team with the 8th-highest winning percentage in a Play-In Game (the “Seven-Eight Game”). The winner of the Seven-Eight Game in each conference will earn the No. 7 seed.
The team with the 9th-highest winning percentage in each conference will host the team with the 10th-highest winning percentage in the “Nine-Ten Game”. The loser of the Seven-Eight Game will host the winner of the Nine-Ten Game in a Play-In Game, and the winner of that game in each conference will earn the No. 8 seed.

The way it’s looking right now, it’s hard to say who the matchups will be. How crazy would it be if the recuperating Lakers fell to the 7th seed, forcing the defending champs into the play-in games?