Kelly Oubre Jr. in concussion protocol, out for Suns

The Phoenix Suns have forward Kelly Oubre Jr. in concussion protocol and he is out for Thursday’s game in New York against the Knicks.

In the mid-first quarter against the Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday, Oubre took a shot to the head from Hawks forward John Collins that was ruled a flagrant foul.

Oubre was clearly showing signs of being dazed after the hit.

Here’s the shot on the head Oubre took in the first quarter that was ruled a flagrant foul. pic.twitter.com/3AaMvQO1Rr

— Kellan Olson (@KellanOlson) January 15, 2020

Despite that, Oubre stayed in the game and finished it. The concussion clearly impacted his play, as he had one of his worst games of the year, shooting 4-of-16 from the field.

Oubre was seen on the Suns’ Twitter account appearing to be traveling with the team, a good sign for his progress already.

🛫 N Y C pic.twitter.com/uyAQwSXi25

— Phoenix Suns (@Suns) January 15, 2020

Once a player is placed in concussion protocol, a player cannot return to the floor until he is without concussion-related symptoms at rest, has been evaluated by a physician, has successfully completed the NBA return-to-participation exertion protocol and a team physician has discussed the return-to-participation process and decision with the director of the NBA concussion program.

Details on the return-to-participation protocol include a member of the team medical staff being with the player for 24 hours, several steps of increased exertion monitored by the staff that cannot be started until 24 hours after the injury and that there is no timetable for the process because each injury is different.

This was recently brought to light in late November when Boston Celtics point guard Kemba Walker had a scary moment in Denver when he had to leave the floor because of a concussion. Walker missed one game.

Oubre, 24, is having his best season to date, averaging career highs in points (18.3), rebounds (6.3) and steals (1.5) per game on his best-career shooting numbers of 46.0% from the field.

After the Knicks game, the Suns are back in action on Saturday in Boston then return home on Monday to take on the San Antonio Spurs.

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