Okafor Looks Good in Summer League Debut

Philadelphia 76ers fans got a first-look at third-overall draft pick, Jahlil Okafor as the big man took to the floor in an Orlando Summer League game against the San Antonio Spurs. Philly squeezed out the win, 76-74.  The Duke standout looked tentative at first, but soon found his groove and was able to kick his game up a notch. He scored 18 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and blocked two shots.

It’s “so far, so good” for Okafor as he showed flashes of the 20-10 player he was scouted to be. It will be interesting to see how the youngster will be able to coexist in the paint with teammate Nerlens Noel. Ideally, both players would end up complementing each other, with Jahlil doing his damage offensively in post and Nerlens taking care of business on the defensive end.

“I just got more comfortable,” he said. “I hadn’t played a five-on-five since the national championship game [between Duke and Wisconsin]. So it’s just getting adjusted, getting some of the rust out. Just talking with my teammates and just figuring it out.”

“It’s a process, and I’m excited about it.”

Jahlil did end up missing all four of his attempts from the free-throw line, one of the knocks in his game back in college and it looks like it will be one the areas of improvement that he will need to focus on to get better at the game.

Latvian player Dairis Bertrans paced the Spurs with 19 points of his own, thanks to some solid shooting from the outside (5-8).

The other game on tap in Day 3 of NBA Summer League action was between the Boston Celtics and the Utah Jazz. The Jazz took this game easily 82-100. Aussie sophomore Dante Exum and Rodney Hood took control of the game. Hood scored 23 points and pulled down 10 boards, while Exum chipped in 20 points, five rebounds and five assists.

Marcus Smart struggled with his shooting from the field and from beyond the three-point arc for Boston, but still managed to finish the game with 26 points and eight assists.