On Monday night, the Philadelphia 76ers and this year’s third overall pick Jahlil Okafor made their Summer League debut. The Sixers, who are being coached by assistant coach Billy Lange, are still trying to find players to be building blocks for the future. On Monday night, the NBA and Sixers, with head coach Brett Brown and general manager Sam Hinkie in attendance saw the future in Okafor.
Okafor had a solid debut with 20 points and nine rebounds in 29 minutes as the Sixers fell to the San Antonio Spurs 74-71 in their first game in the Utah Summer League. Here are three takeaways from Monday night’s game that should have Sixers fans excited.
1. Jahlil Okafor is going to be good for many years to come
Last night, we got a glimpse into what Jahlil Okafor could become as a Philadelphia 76er. The young big man had a rough first half with only six points on 3-of-11 shooting. Despite his rough first half, four of his six points came off of turnaround jump shots, which was definitely something to see. Then in the second half, Okafor got more comfortable and began to dominate scoring 14 points and commanding double teams down in the low post.
Okafor still needs to work on his free throws but other than that he looks like the perfect compliment to Nerlens Noel in the frontcourt.
2. T.J. McConnell could possibly be this team’s starting point guard
Now, before you jump at this second takeaway, if you look at the Sixers current roster the only point guards they have are Isaiah Canaan, Pierre Jackson, and Tony Wroten. Wroten is still rehabbing from his torn ACL, and we possibly will see both Canaan and Jackson in the Las Vegas Summer League. With that being said, the starting point guard job is wide open.
McConnell did not provide a lot of offense in last night’s game with six points, four assists, and seven rebounds but he was a floor general. He was always looking to pass first and putting his teammates in the best position to succeed. This past season, the Sixers’ offense succeeded when Ish Smith was running the point as he was always looking to pass. The Sixers do not need a lot of offense to come from the point guard position especially when they could have a lineup consisting of Jahlil Okafor, Nerlens Noel, Robert Covington, and Nik Stauskas.
3. Jerami Grant takes another step in his sophomore year
Just like in college basketball, in the NBA, a lot of players go through a sophomore slump after their rookie season. On Monday night, Jerami Grant joined the Sixers for his second straight Summer League and looked solid. Grant played very well on the defensive end, while on offense scoring 13 points and grabbing six rebounds. Despite Grant shooting 4-of-13 from the floor, he got to the free throw line 10 times, which is fantastic. But tonight against the Boston Celtics, Grant needs to shoot the ball much better.
The Sixers will be looking for their first Summer League win tonight against the Boston Celtics at 7:00 pm ET on NBA TV.
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