Jahlil Okafor was without an injured Nerlens Noel (knee tendinitis) out on the floor in Toronto for Friday night’s Rising Stars Challenge (aka “The No-Defense Game”), but he had a solid performance: 13 points (6-7 FG), four rebounds, three assists, and one steal. Team USA’s rookies and sophomores won the grind-it-out affair, 157-154.
Again, don’t read much into Okafor’s line. The big fella even knocked down a three:
From Brian Seltzer of Sixers.com:
“It was fun,” Okafor told a group of reporters afterwards. “I wish Nerlens [Noel] could have played. It would have been good to have one of your teammates with you. He was on the bench. We were pretty much joking the whole time. It was a fun trip.”
On the subject of Okafor, former Grantlander Andrew Sharp is now writing about hoops over at Sports Illustrated, and he recently produced a redo of the 2015 NBA Draft. Karl-Anthony Towns and Kristaps Porzingis are predictably (and correctly) slotted as the top two picks, but interestingly, you will have to scroll all the way down to nine to find Jahlil Okafor. Here is Sharp’s take:
On the one hand, Okafor has been a disappointment in Philadelphia, even before you factor in his off-court issues. His defense is atrocious. He doesn't fit with Nerlens Noel. He needs time to work in the post, and that comes at the expense of the rest of the offense, both with ball movement and pace.
On the other hand, he's putting up 17 points, 7 rebounds, and 1 block in 30 minutes per game for the Sixers. If Okafor has somehow turned into the cautionary tale of the 2015 draft, that's only an indication of just how great everyone else is. He's been in a horrible situation, without teammates who can get him the ball, in games that don't really matter. And he's still putting up numbers.
To recap, Sharp has Myles Turner, Devin Booker, Emmanuel Mudiay, Justise Winslow, and Trey Lyles jumping Okafor with second overall pick D’Angelo Russell also staying ahead of him. Whether you believe Sharp is right or wrong largely depends on how you feel about Okafor’s situation.
My take: The concerns that Sharp laid out (defense/rebounding, and offensive fit) are certainly legit and need to be improved upon, which is why the ranking isn't outrageous. That said, I’m not sure he’s giving Okafor enough credit for what the rook is doing offensively. Playing frequently with Noel has been a straight-up tough fit, and his combination of high usage and solid efficiency might be a little more meaningful than “putting up numbers.”
Front office additions?
The Inquirer’s Keith Pompey has some interesting quotes from Jerry Colangelo about potentially bringing in new faces to the front office:
“I think that any time you have an opportunity to enhance your organization and you bring people in to accomplish that, you need to consider it big time. You really do. I think in our case we have a very bright young man in Sam Hinkie, who holds the title of president and GM. In his space he’s really strong.”
That last sentence might raise a few eyebrows, considering Hinkie’s space has been, well, everything. Go read the rest of Pompey’s story for the other quotes. When asked specifically if he’s looking for a new general manager, Colangelo said that he isn’t. At the very least, though, it does sound like he envisions new additions to the front office.
Simmons getting heckled
From today’s LSU-Texas A&M game, this is pretty funny:
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