Ranking all 25 Duke basketball players in the NBA this season
By Matt Giles
Scouting Report. Pick Analysis. Center. Jahlil Okafor. 20. 5th NBA season. player. 69
- Games played this season: 27
- Games started this season: 9
- Minutes per game: 15.6
- Points per game: 7.9
- Rebounds per game: 4.3
- Assists per game: 1.3
- Blocks per game: 0.7
- Steals per game: 0.3
- FG percentage: 61.1
- 3-point percentage: 50.0
- FT percentage: 63.8
Former Duke basketball national champ Jahlil Okafor is a tough one to figure out. As the third overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft, his first season in the league looked like a continuation of his stellar one season in Durham. But injuries, off-court issues, and various problems with the Philadelphia 76ers contributed to his decline in subsequent seasons.
This season, though, Okafor’s second in New Orleans, when the 24-year-old is on the court, his soft touch and fancy footwork suggest that a return to his rookie and Dukie ways could be on the horizon. On the other hand, until the 6-foot-10, 275-pound Chicago native puts in the work to shore up some defensive deficiencies, his lack of playing time may remain an obstacle to his growth.