Former Duke basketball superstar Jahlil Okafor checked into his first NBA game since 2021 on February 11th for the Indiana Pacers. The Pacers were at home against the New York Knicks and fell 128-115.
After one season at Duke in 2014-15 where Okafor led the Blue Devils to a 2015 National Championship, the big man was drafted 3rd overall by the Philadelphia 76ers in the 2015 NBA Draft, deemed the next dominant center in the NBA.
But, his career never took that next step to NBA stardom, as his back-to-the-basket style never translated to the modern NBA.
After three seasons in Philadelphia, Okafor was dealt to the Brooklyn Nets and then bounced around with the New Orleans Pelicans, Atlanta Hawks, and Detroit Pistons before finding himself completely out of the league by the end of the 2020-21 season.
Okafor then went to play overseas but saw an opportunity to make an NBA comeback after being selected by the Valley Suns in this year's G-League expansion draft and traded to the Indiana Mad Ants, the G-League affiliate of the Indiana Pacers.
In 15 games played for the Mad Ants this season, Okafor averaged 18.6 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 3.3 assists per game on 64.5% shooting from the field.
Okafor began turning heads, and it seemed like an NBA comeback was a real possibility for the once praised big man.
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And last night, Okafor finally made his way back to the NBA, checking in for the Indiana Pacers.
Okafor logged 0 points, 1 assist, and 1 rebound in 3 minutes of action at the end of the game in Indiana's loss to New York, but nonetheless he saw minutes on an NBA court for the first time in three years.
The big man also earned his first NBA contract in that span as the Pacers signed Okafor to a 10-day contract with Myles Turner injured until after the All-Star break.
"He can rebound. He's a guy that can score, he can finish," Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle said. "We're taking care of our own here. There were other options, but we elected to bring somebody on board that has been with us for the entirety of the Mad Ants season."
"That's loyalty to show to someone who's shown loyalty to us, which is great. And I wish him the best.
Okafor will now have the opportunity to revive a once lost NBA career with Indiana at 29 years old.