Philadelphia 76ers: 5 goals for Jahlil Okafor in 2017-18

5. Improve free throw shooting

While this isn’t a grave concern, Okafor can certainly increase his proficiency from the charity stripe.

This past season, Okafor converted at a 67.1 percent clip from the free throw line, a slight dip from the 68.6 percent return of his rookie season. However, his attempt rate increased in his second season, leaping from 4.4 to 5.0 attempts per 36 minutes. So naturally, if a player such as Okafor is trying to establish his status in the league, making the most of his chances at the free throw line should be imperative.

In comparison to some of the elite centers around the league, Okafor’s return’s certainly fall short at present. Here are some of the returns last season by accomplished centers:

• Marc Gasol:  83.7 percent
• Karl-Anthony Towns:  83.2 percent
• Nikola Jokic:  82.5 percent
• Brook Lopez:  81.0 perent
• Anthony Davis:  80.2 percent

However, struggles at the line in the early stages of a big man’s career certainly has precedent. Karl Malone commenced his Hall of Fame career by converting at a 48.1 percent clip from the free throw line in his rookie season. But after his 19-year career that included 14 All-Star appearances, Malone finished as a career 74.2 percent free throw shooter. Considering Malone averaged 8.9 attempts over his career, improving this aspect of vis game was vital.

Another example is recently retired San Antonio Spurs legend Tim Duncan. Despite commencing his career as a 66.2 percent shooter from the line, Duncan managed to reach a peak of 81.7 percent from the line in his 16th season in the league at age 36.

Okafor is still just 21, and has a long way to go to establish himself in the league, let alone even sniff the levels produced by Malone and Duncan. But these feats are just a couple of examples that indicate that this an area of Okafor’s game that can certainly be rectified.