Jahlil Okafor: Timberwolves 2015 NBA Draft Profile

Feb 14, 2015; Syracuse, NY, USA; Duke Blue Devils center Jahlil Okafor (15) prepares to shoot a free throw against the Syracuse Orange during the second halfat the Carrier Dome. Duke defeated Syracuse 80-72. Mandatory Credit: Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports

Weaknesses:

One main weakness in Okafor’s game is his brutal free throw shooting. He shot 51% at the free throw line at Duke, which is scary considering the fact that the “hack-a” strategy has emerged in the NBA.

Offensively, Okafor doesn’t have much for weaknesses. The main concern here, as I mentioned in my draft profile of Towns yesterday, is that Okafor was usually defended by much smaller opponents and was able to get a shot he wanted most of the time. Now, his size and footwork should allow him to adjust to the size of big men in the NBA.

Another possible weakness is that Okafor does tend to get somewhat reckless on the offensive end. In other words, he gets too aggressive at times and will either force up a difficult shot or get charged with an offensive foul. However, again, this is something that Okafor will be able to adjust to and improve on with better coaching.

Defensively, Okafor has a few weaknesses. The first and likely the most important issue with Okafor’s defense is that he seems to give less effort than he should, which is why some of his defensive statistics are poor. Opponents shot 39% in isolation situations against Okafor, which is pretty weak for a guy his size at the college level.

Additionally, Okafor hasn’t shown that he’s quick enough to defend some of the quicker big men in the NBA yet. This may be due to the lack of effort that he displayed in college, but he nonetheless hasn’t shown this yet.

I should mention that this perceived idea that Okafor is weak defensively isn’t universal. As I mention in this piece from a few days back, Okafor’s trainer argues that there is no issue with his defense. However, there may be some bias, so make of this what you want.

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