The Phoenix Suns need Kelly Oubre to play again this season for two reasons

The Phoenix Suns need Kelly Oubre to play again this season for two very important reasons.

It has been widely speculated that if the Phoenix Suns had been healthier this year (and with star center Deandre Ayton not out for 25-games due to his mysterious suspension), that not only would the team be more entrenched in the playoff hunt right now, they’d be holding  onto the eight-seed in the Western Conference as we speak.

But time and again this roster has been ravaged by injuries from top to bottom, the latest one to Kelly Oubre, with only 23 games remaining and still only four games back of the eight-seed, seeming to be the biggest proverbial kick in the head.

In the end, the playoff dream might already have been dead regardless, so the loss of Oubre doesn’t mean a whole  heckofa lot (then again, with Memphis on a four-game losing streak, Phoenix’s elimination number is still only 20 – it had been 22 at the All-Star Break).

Kelly Oubre playing might  have helped Phoenix pull along late and maybe actually sneak into the playoffs.

A return though, if even for a brief period of time, could not only help with that final push but also possibly be the perfect last-second addition to the roster for a first round matchup against the Los Angeles Lakers.

Imagine a Willis Reed-esque return for Oubre, hobbling onto the court for shoot around while Al McCoy calls out that Kelly made  his first practice shot, and then made  his second practice shot.

While there is little doubt that the Phoenix Suns would be swept by Los Angeles in the first round with or without Oubre, his return for that round would absolutely be enough to keep fans interested, especially considering the injury itself.

But there are is still two additional and in the long-term, more important, reasons to hope for his return at some point before the end of the year.