Philadelphia 76ers: Jahlil Okafor is a liability
Mandatory Credit: Noah K. Murray-USA TODAY Sports
Philadelphia 76ers took the best player available. But with Brett Brown’s style, so far Jahlil Okafor is a liability.
It’s been a frustrating first six weeks of the season for these Sixers. The frustration is mounting. This start shouldn’t have come as much of a surprise for the Sixer fan base and NBA fan base in general, and was even more compounded with so many injuries on the roster. This Sixers team finished third worst in the league last year, and the only major off-season additions were Jahlil Okafor, and Kendall Marshall coming off an injury.
The time has come for coach Brett Brown to demonstrate his leadership and ability as a coach, the in-game manager. After all, he just received a two-year extension.
This begins with lineups, and in particular, the starting lineup. The starting-five has been horrendous. At this point in the season, it is probably best the Okafor-Noel pairing to be thrown out. The Sixers are a young team, yes, but Okafor is a liability.
Jahlil Okafor:
| Team | Opponent | Difference | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Split | Tm | MP | eFG% | TOV% | ORtg | eFG% | TOV% | ORtg | eFG% | TOV% | ORtg |
| On Court | PHI | 713 | .453 | 20.4 | 91.0 | .499 | 14.2 | 110.4 | -.046 | +20.3 | -19.4 |
| Off Court | PHI | 439 | .490 | 16.4 | 98.8 | .485 | 18.3 | 102.0 | +.004 | +16.2 | -3.2 |
| On − Off | PHI | 62% | -.037 | +4.0 | -7.8 | +.014 | -4.1 | +8.4 | -.050 | +4.1 | -16.2 |
In 713 minutes, with Okafor in the lineup, the overall offense and defense is… Terrible. The effective field goal percentage of the team (adjusts for the fact that a 3-point field goal is worth one more point than a 2-point field goal) is nearly four percent lower compared to him off the court at 439 minutes. In those 713 minutes, the Sixers’ offensive rating is 91.0 (an estimate of points produced by players or scored by teams per 100 possessions). That number jumps significantly higher to 98.8 (!) when Okafor exits the floor. Thats almost 9 more points for the team.
The Sixers also turn the ball over at a higher rate with the big man on the court (the turnover percentage is an estimate of turnovers committed per 100 plays), so when Okafor is in the lineup the team is turning the ball over 20 times per 100 possessions. When compared to him out of the lineup, the team turns the ball over four less times at 16 per 100 possessions.
On defense, the Sixers perform much better with him on the bench. They are allowing 102 points per 100 possessions on a 48 true shooting percentage, which is tremendously better than with him on the court at 110.4 on a 50 percentage. The Sixers are giving up over eight points. The turnover percentage on defense is something to look at as well. The team is forcing more turnovers per 100 possessions with Okafor on the bench (18.8 to 14.2). When it comes to basketball, forcing turnovers is a key part in winning. It seems like the Sixers are more active on defense when the big guy is taken out.
The difference in the overall offensive rating between the Sixers and their opponents with the rookie on the floor is worth a gasp (a difference of -19.4)
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The talk in the 2015 draft was the Duke superstar was a liability on defense and its showing, but no-one knew if he was going to be a liability on the offensive end as well. I know he’s 20 years-old and a rookie, and he’ll learn to get better, but the comparative stats are astounding. It’ll be interesting to see if coach Brown makes a lineup change, especially with the option of Nerlens Noel.
