Sixers need to hang on to Kelly Oubre Jr. — at least through the end of the season

People are asking: How long will Kelly Oubre Jr. remain in a 76ers uniform?

If the Sixers are wise, the answer is at least through the end of the season.

The 30-year-old swingman’s contract expires at the end of June. However, his name has been repeatedly mentioned in recent trade reports. And that could continue ahead of the Feb. 5 trade deadline as teams look to upgrade rosters and slash salaries.

But at this point, the Sixers will be hard-pressed to find someone able to do what Oubre provides.

The squad is starting to show glimpses of why it has received Eastern Conference championship-contender hype. And Oubre’s ability to adjust to his ever-changing role is a reason for that.

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The Sixers dropped to 24-20 after Saturday afternoon’s 112-109 loss to the New York Knicks at Xfinity Mobile Arena.

Before that tilt, they defeated the Houston Rockets, 128-122, in overtime Thursday night at home. Oubre played a significant role in the victory, finishing with 26 points on 10-for-14 shooting along with four rebounds, three assists, and one block while starting alongside Paul George, Joel Embiid, VJ Edgecombe, and Tyrese Maxey.

It was the first time the Sixers employed that starting lineup.

Coach Nick Nurse said before Sunday’s game that they would stay with it for a while. And had another solid performance, finishing with 14 points on 5-for-10 shooting, along with seven rebounds, three assists, and two steals.

His remaining as a starter is understandable, given that it was a lineup they were expected to unveil at the beginning of the season. But George missed the first 12 games with left knee injury management. Then Oubre was sidelined 22 games from Nov. 17 to Jan. 5. While those two were injured, power forward Dominick Barlow proved to be a solid fifth starter.

But Oubre is a more experienced, more versatile player, and has been noted several times before as the team’s X factor. His ability to play shooting guard, small forward, and small-ball power forward gives the Sixers a variety of rotation options.

While he starts at small forward, Oubre moves to shooting guard in a lineup that features George, Barlow, Embiid, and Maxey when Edgecombe is out of the game. And in his first game back from a sprained left knee ligament on Jan. 7, he played power forward in a small-ball lineup with Maxey, Quentin Grimes, Jared McCain, and Adem Bona.

“He plays both ends, right?” Nurse said of his impact as a versatile player. “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. ”

All-Star cornerstones, Embiid, Maxey, and George, along with rookie-of-the-year candidate Edgecombe, have deservedly received a lot of credit for the team’s being viewed as a contender.

Embiid had scored at least 30 points in four consecutive games. While the 7-2 center is not where he once was defensively, he’s showing glimpses of being a 2023 MVP and seven-time All-Star. Embiid is averaging 33.3 points, 10 rebounds, 5.5 assists, and 0.7 blocks while shooting 58.3% on three-pointers in those games.

Meanwhile, Maxey, who was named an All-Star starter on Monday, is averaging a league-third-best 29.9 points, a second-best 2.1 steals, and 12th-best 6.8 rebounds this season. He was also fourth (147) in made three-pointers.

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George’s average of 15.4 points is below his career average of 20.5 points. But the nine-time All-Star has thrived at times as a facilitator and an elite defender. And it’s not uncommon for him to provide the bulk of the scoring during third-quarter stretches.

Edgecombe is averaging 15.6 points, a league 11th-best 1.5 steals, 5.3 rebounds, and 4.2 assists. The 20-year-old shooting guard’s elite potential was on full display in the Sixers’ season-opening victory over the Boston Celtics.

That night, he scored 34 points to help lead the Sixers to victory. It was the third-highest scoring debut in NBA history behind Chamberlain’s 43 points on Oct. 24, 1959, and Frank Selvy’s 35 on Nov. 30, 1954.

Concurrently, Oubre averaged 14.6 points, 4.5 rebounds, 1.1 steals, and shot 38.3% on three-pointers while continuously adjusting his role depending on who was playing or who the Sixers were playing against. The one constant thing is his defending the opposing team’s best perimeter player.

Nurse was asked before Saturday’s game where he thinks Oubre has improved the most as a defender.

“Listen, I think there are a couple of things, but probably at the top would be just his overall reading of situations,” Nurse said. “Just having a feel for anticipating what might happen next and getting involved in that and breaking that up. But he’s also been much better on the ball. He’s been much better in screen-and-roll. Stuff like that.”

The New Orleans native has starred in all of his roles in addition to doing countless other things that go unnoticed on a stat sheet.

As good as Embiid, George, Maxey, and Edgecombe are, championship-caliber teams are built with players like Oubre.

The only benefit of trading him at this time is perhaps shedding his salary. Oubre’s expiring $8.3 million contract would help them gain salary cap relief and avoid the luxury tax. The squad is currently more than $7 million over the luxury-tax threshold. That’s why his name has been mentioned in reports.

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But, night now, they can’t afford to let him go if contending for a title this season is truly the goal.

The number of realistic available better options is slim. Even if they find a player as good, it will take the new person a while to adjust to the Sixers’ system. And Oubre’s ability to adapt is a primary reason why the team is starting to live up to expectations.

With Embiid’s extension kicking in next season and Grimes becoming an unrestricted free agent, it may make sense for Oubre and the Sixers to part ways after the season.

The way he’s been playing this season and elevated his stock during his Sixers’ three-year tenure, Oubre could become too costly to re-sign.

It may make sense for the sides to part ways after the season.

You can’t trade that away at this time.