One of the real strong points of Jahlil Okafor's game coming into the NBA Draft was that he's essentially NBA ready, with a good (if not comparably elite) ceiling. He's big, strong, quick and extremely talented in the post. The Philadelphia 76ers decided to pair him with Nerlens Noel (and Joel Embiid, maybe), hoping he can be the bedrock of what they hope to build offensively. Scoring has been the big problem during the Sixers' rebuilding process, and their intention is to have Okafor's post scoring open up the floor on the perimeter.
He got off to a tremendous start in his first preseason game vs. the Wizards:
But Okafor has struggled since. The Philadelphia Inquirer reports that the Sixers are staying patient with the 19-year-old, and looking to open up more for Okafor on the perimeter to take some of the pressure off.
"I have to do a better job of placing people around him and helping him grow," Sixers coach Brett Brown said. "I'm just being quiet and watching how he plays. Then [I will start] trying to figure it out."
But Okafor has combined to make just 5 of 18 (27 percent) shots and averaged seven points while drawing crowds against the Cleveland Cavaliers and Brooklyn Nets. The Chicago native looked frustrated with his play at times in Saturday's 97-95 victory over the Nets at Times Union Center in Albany, N.Y.
Part of the problem is that he has no room to move on the court as the primary offensive threat. Teams are doing everything possible to stop him, forcing another Sixer to beat them.
"We are just getting him the ball, trying to space around him and let's see [what happens]," Brown said. "I think I've got to coach more movement around him. You know, cutting off post feeds, slashing from the weak side."
The length and athleticism of NBA post players and the quickness of league guards are unfamiliar territory to him. So Brown said he and Okafor need to figure out a way to "quarterback the gym."
"Then we start sprinkling shooters around," Brown said. "That's the best play [we] have - Jahlil Okafor, get him the ball, and [defenders] are going to come. We can play that second side."
Source: Okafor's struggles part of growing process, Sixers say.
The lack of perimeter scoring is definitely an issue, and it has been for years. The Sixers were sixth in 3-point attempts last season ... and 29th in 3-point percentage. If Philadelphia can't counter that, teams are going to consistently send doubles at the youngster. Still, there's also work to be done on his end as he settles down into the NBA game.
One thing really stood out when watching his performance vs. the Cleveland Cavaliers. When faced up against Sasha Kaun, Okafor struggled with the fact he's now facing players with as much (or more) strength than he possesses.
Okafor's typically able to steamroll the opponents he's faced. He'll have to adjust to the comparable strength that these players have. Most will be older and have simply added more muscle. This isn't a long-term concern, Okafor's going to wind up stronger than most construction equipment. But in the interim, he has to figure out ways around it.
There are open shooters there, but Okafor's going into his scoring motion. He'll learn to make those reads this season, but that's not a long-term concern. (Those shooters actually making them, however, is.)
Okafor gets a running start here and still is surprised when Cavs center Sasha Kaun (who really was a brick wall in this game) stonewalls him.
One more time, too much strength for him here:
The good news, however, is when Okafor gets his opponent moving. He's quick enough to still cause problems. He gets Kaun moving in space here and is able to draw the foul:
Okafor's spin move is going to frustrate a lot of good defenders this season. He just slips by like a breeze blowing through trees here:
Don't need to be strong to be quick:
Okafor's got a lot to learn and growing pains are to be expected. He's going to be fine, though, and the Sixers know that. With Nerlens Noel and Okafor, this season might be the start of Philadelphia actually building toward something tangible instead of drifting in the seas of development.
But seriously, someone's got to hit a few 3s for them.
