Jahlil Okafor will be meeting Karl-Anthony Towns on the big stage after all – just months later than most anticipated. Following the lead of seven Kentucky Wildcats, the Duke Blue Devils big man has decided to enter the 2015 NBA draft.
Duke announced the news on its website earlier today. Coach Mike Krzyzewski praised Okafor’s choice and stressed that he will always have a home in Durham. For his part, the 19 year-old said becoming a NBA player is a dream long in the making.
“As early as I can remember, I’ve fantasized and dreamed of the day that I could play professional basketball,” said Okafor. “ I recall at the age of six, promising my mom and dad that when I made it to the NBA I would buy them both different colored trucks. They would laugh with me in support and encouraged me to dream big and work hard. With that being said and now at the age of 19, my dream is still alive! My freshman year has been an amazing experience to say the least. It exceeded my expectations! I love Cameron and Duke University! I can’t thank my coaches, teammates and family enough for making this year so special and helping me grow on and off the court. With Coach K’s and my family’s blessing I will be fulfilling my life-long dream and proudly entering my name into the NBA draft.”
The 6’11, 270-pounder averaged 17.3 points and 8.5 rebounds per game in 2014-2015, earning ACC Freshman and Player of the Year awards in addition to being named a consensus a First-Team All-American. Okafor led the Blue Devils to a 28-3 regular season record and number one seed in the NCAA Tournament before taking backseat for his team’s ride to the National Championship.
Interestingly, Okafor’s current draft stock would be higher if Duke hadn’t made a run to Krzyzewski’s fifth NCAA title. Though he averaged a team-best 15.0 points per game on 63.5 percent shooting in the tournament, those numbers are inflated by a dominant opening weekend performance against substandard competition.
Okafor managed a combined 25 points and 19 rebounds on 12-of-25 from the field in three games versus Utah, Gonzaga, and Wisconsin, all teams that boast legitimate NBA size and talent in the frontcourt. There’s a reason the highly efficient big man is no longer anything close to a consensus top prospect, basically, and it has a lot to do with his performance in March.
But that hardly means Okafor isn’t a wildly intriguing prospect. Players with his advanced scoring knack are few and far between at the college level – especially among behemoths. The Chicago product has hooks, drop-steps, counter moves, and can face up and make plays off the bounce, too. The next steps for Okafor offensively? Range on his jumper and comfort passing out of double-teams, attributes that appear possible at the very least.
It’s the other end that could prevent him from being taken first overall. Okafor doesn’t move well laterally at the moment and isn’t an explosive leaper. In a league where big men are tasked with defending pick-and-rolls more than ever, his physical deficiencies will be exploited on a nightly basis time and again. That Okafor won’t be a legitimate rim-protector at the next level only makes matters worse. He’ll get more explosive under the watchful eye of a NBA strength and conditioning coach, but there’s simply a ceiling to Okafor’s defensive impact that he’s unlikely to break through.
He’s a gem nonetheless, though, and any team would be thrilled to draft him. But franchises selecting first overall should swing for home runs as opposed to doubles, and Okafor’s career seems most likely to resemble the latter.
[Duke]
