New Orleans Pelicans: Jahlil Okafor Step In Wrong Direction
The New Orleans Pelicans are said to be having deep discussions centered around acquiring second-year center Jahlil Okafor. It would seem Dell Demps is once again mortgaging the future for a mediocre player and a chance to win now.
It would be a huge mistake and a step in the wrong direction for the New Orleans Pelicans, a franchise trying to rebuild itself into a contender, to trade for Philadelphia backup center Jahlil Okafor.
Yes, the Pelicans desperately need frontcourt help. That’s not a secret.
After the failed experiment of bringing in defensive specialist Omer Asik during the summer of 2014, the Pelicans are now trying to ship away his undesirable contract and once again find themselves looking for help in the form of another big man to pair with superstar Anthony Davis — and since a defensive guy didn’t work why not try an offensive guy this time around, right?
New Orleans’ current roster simply does not yield an impactful inside presence outside of Davis.
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The aforementioned Asik and seventh-year player Alexis Ajinca are the other two centers on the team and both have been the main subject of trade rumors as of late, with one or both likely being dealt by the Feb. 23 trade deadline.
New Orleans Pelicans
So naturally it would make sense for the Pelicans to want to bring in another big to help inside and take some of the burden off Davis. But it has to be the right guy and it has to be at the right price.
Jahlil Okafor has been a proficient offensive option when at his best. He possesses a good post game, can put the ball on the floor, create for himself anywhere close to or within the painted area, has nice hands and finishes around the rim with a soft touch.
He came into the league out of Duke, showcasing an already advanced offensive game which netted him 17.5 points a game as a rookie; helping him earn first team All-Rookie honors after his first year in the league.
The problem, however, is that Okafor does most of his work out of the painted area. He’s a “ball stopper” who slows down the offensive pace of the game while taking up space on that end of the court.
Philly’s pace per 100 possessions was at his slowest when Okafor was on the court during his rookie year and has been the case once again this season.
Head coach Alvin Gentry was brought in to boost the offense and has been clear about his intentions of maintaining an up-tempo offensive system. Gentry is looking for everyone, from his guards to the bigs, to get up and down the court in a hurry.
The addition of Jahlil Okafor will undoubtedly do the opposite and slow down the team’s pace instead.
Because Okafor likes to work out of the painted area, he will force Anthony Davis to play more on the perimeter, as was the case this season when Okafor was paired with 76ers rookie sensation Joel Embiid — which we’ll get into more in a little bit.
On the other end of the court, Jahlil Okafor is not a good rebounder and defensively is a liability at best. He isn’t strong enough to defend most bigs in the post.
He’s slow getting back in transition and isn’t quick enough on defensive rotations or switching on pick and rolls; leaving him out of position far too many times.
Sure, Anthony Davis can clean up some of his deficiencies that Okafor has, but to be a good defensive team, all parts of the unit have to work cohesively and be able to communicate, switch and help each other out on most, if not every one, of their defensive possessions.
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Philadelphia experimented with playing both he and Embiid in the lineup and the results weren’t good. The 76ers posted a 95.8 offensive rating as Embiid was forced into moving to the 4 because Okafor is only comfortable playing center.
Not only that, but the defensive communication between the two left a lot to be desired as the Sixers gave up 117.3 points per 100 possessions during the eight games in which they were on the court at the same time.
Suffice to say the experiment was quickly abandoned for more efficient options.
Anthony Davis, who was moved to the center position last season, is a mismatch for most opposing bigs because of his quickness, ball handling and ability to play on the perimeter, where most centers have trouble defending.
With the addition of Okafor, Davis will likely have to move back to playing power forward, where he’ll be matched up with other forwards and stretch-4s who can better defend him on the outside.
But as much as this is about the Pelicans trying to acquire Jahlil Okafor, it’s just as much about the team, and more specifically, general manager Dell Demps’ continued mission of mortgaging the future of the franchise with “quick fix solutions” and a flawed “win-now” mentality even if the team is in no condition to do so.
The moves he makes come off as desperate attempts to save his own job rather than anything geared towards building something sustainable long-term.
Since Davis was drafted at 19 years old, Demps has been in panic mode, trying to “throw” a team around him rather than patiently build one with the right players.
And although it’s hearsay, in his detailing of the Jahlil Okafor trade in which he broke, Sam Amick reports that Demps “faces increasing pressure and is well aware that he needs to find more support for his franchise centerpiece in Davis.”
Since drafting Anthony Davis in 2012, Demps has given away 2013 draft pick Nerlens Noel in addition to their 2014 first-round draft pick to acquire point guard Jrue Holiday, whom had just come off an All-Star campaign in 2013, but later was revealed to have played with a stress fracture in his lower right leg during his final season with the Sixers.
The stress fracture was missed during the physical examination performed by the Pelicans before the completion of the trade.
That stress fracture in his tibia caused him to miss 90 games in his first two seasons with the Pelicans, while he was limited in a number of games he did play in; including last season.
He was slowly worked back into the lineup in 2015-16 and even came off the bench in 43 of the 65 games he appeared in before having to miss two games late in the year due to a toe injury and eventually shutting it down for the rest of the season a few games later with a right orbital wall fracture.
To be fair, Holiday has been a real asset to the Pelicans when healthy and at only 26 years of age should be a part of New Orleans’ future going forward.
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As mentioned at the top of this article, after Demps parted with the Pelicans’ 2013 and 2014 draft picks, he then gave away the Pelicans’ 2015 first-round pick to acquire Asik, a defensive specialist who was already on his way out of Houston due to the signing of Dwight Howard.
(It would seem Houston general manager Daryl Morey and his protege, former Philadelphia GM Sam Hinkie, got the best of Demps on two different occasions).
After a year in which former head coach Monty Williams, a favorite of franchise cornerstone Anthony Davis, got the Pelicans a 45-37 record and a playoff bid with an injury-riddled squad in 2014-15, Demps (perhaps at the behest of ownership) saw if fit to fire Williams in a move that shocked the basketball world and still makes no sense.
Now, reports suggest that Demps once again is more than willing to part with a first-round draft pick, this time their 2018 first-round pick (even if protected) in order to pick up another mediocre player with the hope of winning a few more game and get into this year’s playoffs.
That would be a postseason which would ultimately end with a first-round loss and miss out on this year’s lottery in what is supposed to be a draft stocked full of talent.
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As I wrote about here, these moves are not only a step back for a franchise trying to right itself but also exactly how you don’t build sustainable success around your star player, Anthony Davis.