Summer Sixers Fall to Knicks in OT

By Sean Kennedy (@PhillyFastBreak)

The Sixers end the pool play portion of the Vegas Summer League with an 0-3 record, as they fell 84-81 to the Knicks in overtime Tuesday afternoon. The game featured some interesting storylines on the court, and there was some news off it for the Sixers, so let’s get to it.

The Battle of #3 vs. #4 Scored a Draw

“Isolating and devastating” – Walt Frazier on Jahlil Okafor’s post game.

— Jake Fischer (@JakeLFischer) July 14, 2015

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Jahlil Okafor was dominant early on, scoring 8 points and securing 3 rebounds before taking a seat just 6 minutes into the game. His girth was simply too much to deal with down low for Knicks first-round pick Kristaps Porzingis and substitute Alex Kirk didn’t stand much of a chance either; Okafor finished the game with 18 points and 6 rebounds. The footwork Big Jah shows on the block continues to be remarkable for a guy that’s still a teenager; he’s practically going to be able to score at will when his career hits its peak.

However, there were again some downsides to Okafor’s game, as he noticeably tired as the game progressed. Porzingis gives up considerable weight to Jah, but did use his length to hold his own down the stretch, including blocking Okafor twice late in the game; the Sixers big man was blocked 5 times total. Okafor needs to develop his mid-range jumper; there were times he had a wide-open 15-footer and didn’t even look to shoot. Also, the free throws consider to be a concern, as Okafor started 0-5 at the line, finishing 2-7. Fortunately, I would consider these areas fairly correctable. The Sixers were able to improve on Nerlens Noel’s free throw shooting, and once Jah gets in Brett Brown’s conditioning program, I would expect that area to improve as well.

Wilbekin On Fire

As Derek Bodner put it, Scottie WillBeInCamp, after the former Florida Gator scored a game-high 26 points, including a 6-8 mark from three. Wilbekin hit his first 6 triples and also was fouled in the closing seconds of regulation with the Sixers down three; Scottie calmly knocked down all three shots from the charity stripe to send the game to overtime. Wilbekin has a contract to play in Australia next year, but he can get out of it with a NBA contract. Now shooting 13-22 from three across three games in Vegas, it’d be shocking if Wilbekin wasn’t in training camp with some NBA team, if not the Sixers.

Pappy Jack Officially a Sixer

Late into the Vegas night, Pierre Jackson signed a 4-year, partially guaranteed contract with the Sixers. Full details have yet to be released; it’s unknown whether other Sixers barricaded themselves into a room with Pappy and played cards until he signed the deal. Jackson has the ability to both get past his man into the lane and hit shots from behind the arc, abilities that have been an either/or proposition for Sixers point guards lately. With mixed reports about Tony Wroten’s status for opening night coming off the ACL injury, and Isaiah Canaan having proven to be little more than a spot-up shooter, it’s entirely possible Jackson could be the starting point guard for the Sixers come the fall. It’s a nice story for a guy who worked hard to get back after suffering a gruesome achilles tear in his first summer league game last year.