The New Orleans Pelicans called the Golden State Warriors about small forward Kelly Oubre Jr., but did not propose a trade, according to Warriors coach Steve Kerr.
Still, trade rumors surfaced shortly thereafter.
“I talked to him about” the reports, Kerr told reporters. “It’s unfortunate. A team (New Orleans) called us and asked us, didn’t even make us an offer, just asked about Kelly. Next thing we know, it’s online. This is sort of modern NBA, modern life.”
Oubre, 25, has already been traded by the Washington Wizards to the Phoenix Suns, then from the Suns to the Warriors this past offseason. He even landed with the Oklahoma City Thunder somewhere in there.
Oubre’s scoring average is down about six points from last season (to 12.1 ppg), as he tries to find his footing in his new surroundings.
“I tell the players all the time and I told Kelly today, this is where you really earn your money,” Kerr said. “The basketball part is the easy part. Packing up your family and leaving, getting injured, getting booed, or reading your name in trade rumors, those thing are not easy.
“So I was really proud of Kelly. He handled it really well. We texted this afternoon, and I told him just now how proud I was of him, because it’s not easy to play through that stuff, and he came in and had one of his best games.”
