The Sixer Sense
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Will Team USA Select Experience Aid Philadelphia 76ers?

By Bret Stuter

Dec 1, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers center Roy Hibbert (17) battles for the ball on the floor against Philadelphia 76ers center Jahlil Okafor (8) and forward Jerami Grant (39) and guard Isaiah Canaan (0) during the first half at Wells Fargo Center. The 76ers won 103-91. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 1, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers center Roy Hibbert (17) battles for the ball on the floor against Philadelphia 76ers center Jahlil Okafor (8) and forward Jerami Grant (39) and guard Isaiah Canaan (0) during the first half at Wells Fargo Center. The 76ers won 103-91. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports /
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Having attended Team USA Select practice in Las Vegas, Jahlil Okafor and Jerami Grant have been included with some of the brightest stars among the NBA. Will the experience help the Philadelphia 76ers?

Jahlil Okafor and Jerami Grant are well known to the fans of the Philadelphia 76ers. But to fans of the NBA in general, each player is not a common household name just yet. At least, not in the typical “he’s a great player” perspective. You see, the Philadelphia 76ers were a 10-72 record team in the 2015-2016 season, and as such they have fallen to the bottom shelf of the casual NBA fan’s shopping list. Thankfully, the NBA powers that be do not operate on the same principals.

Jerami Grant is known by name recognition: son of Harvey Grant, a former NBA player, nephew of Horace Grant, and his brothers Jerai and Jerian, both basketball players in their own right.  Jerami Grant was selected by the Philadelphia 76ers with the 39th pick of the 2014 NBA draft, the same draft which brought redshirt rookies Joel Embiid and Dario Saric to the team’s active roster this year.  At 6-foot-8 and 208 pound, Grant fills the small forward role for the Philadelphia 76ers, but in an unusual capacity.  You see, he only sports a three-point shot with a 27.8 percent career NBA accuracy.  His forte on offense is limited, a fact discussed at length by former Sixer Sense writer George Kondoleon.

So what does he bring to Team NBA Select?

Defense.

It’s that defense that made his head coach’s head turn. That same defense caught the attention of the selection committee of Team USA Select. But his pure value on the team is a player who can play shooting guard, small forward, and power forward, all in the same season, and sometimes in the same game. Brett Brown has had to “MacGyver” his starting roster, and in that assembling of parts to create a functional roster, Grant was the duct tape that held it all together.

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It was this excellence of defense and versatility which placed Jerami Grant’s name on the Team USA Select roster.

Conversely, Jahlil Okafor is recognizable name, but as a trade chip offered up by the Philadelphia 76ers this off-season. Unfortunately, that rumor (or series of rumors) has overshadowed the young rookies stellar play in his 53-game rookie season. Despite a shift of center to power forward, an injury shortened season, starting off the season without a clear starting point guard, Jahlil Okafor exploded offensively for the Philadelphia 76ers in his first and only year in the NBA.

And so, in just 53 games, Jahlil Okafor managed to defeat routine double teams to score 17.5 points per game, bring down 7.0 rebounds per game, block 1.2 shots per game, and shoot a very respectable 50.8 percent despite shooting from the high traffic area under the basket. It was his first year, a year where he was asked to carry the team on his back while he was still deboarding from the bus.

It was this excellence in the crunch which placed Jahlil Okafor’s name on the Team USA Select roster.

But we now know what got them there, but what will they bring from it?

Experience. Priceless experience.

"“I think it was good. “Just being out here, getting to see what the older players are doing, I think it’ll definitely help me in the future, and help everybody here in the future. I think this is definitely more of a learning experience for me. Just being around some of the best basketball players in the world, I think you can learn from that. If you pay attention and you’re watching, along with the coaches, they’re some of the greatest coaches in the world, as well, I think you can learn a lot. Experience is the best teacher. Being around these guys, knowing how they play, just trying to take bits and pieces off of everybody’s game, or everybody that you think your game resembles, it will definitely be a plus.” -Grant said following a scrimmage game on Monday."

And his teammate?

"“Being around a bunch of high-level guys every day, seeing their preparation, how hard they work, being around some great coaches. Just taking it all in. We’re on the Select team. We get to see the official Olympic team, and seeing the top guys in our league, so being able to watch them and learn from them. DeAndre’s (Jordon) obviously amazing defensively. He’s done a great job with his body. And Boogie (Cousins), he’s just an all around great player, so I’ll be watching those two guys a lot. (They’re) just a bunch of guys that I can learn some more from, so I’m excited about these next few days” – said Okafor."

Keep in mind that these are two players whose team hasn’t had that level of excellence to observe on a day to day basis. In fact, the team has not had much in the way of veteran resources whatsoever, so most of the players’ knowledge has been solely dependent upon their coaching staff.

Now, two of the 76ers better players have more to draw upon. They have the opportunity to compare to what they’ve heard and trained for, and see living proof in the results of NBA veteran players who have excelled wonderfully. They can see that the game requires years of discipline to achieve a solid NBA game,and a solid NBA reputation.

Team USA Select is about building a fraternity.  Connecting talented young players with talented veterans, because NBA teams are not always able to do so.  Eventually, that connection becomes social, and even friendly.  If a young player faces an issue, that friendship is one more tether, one more stabilizing force, to help the young man to make correct decisions about his career, his finances, and his life.

Next: Nik Stauskas Shouldn't Make the Philadelphia 76ers' Roster

With a roster of just 25 players, it’s amazing that two of the players from the worst team in the past year have qualified as members of 2016’s Team USA Select.   Add those names to that of T.J. McConnell, Nerlens Noel, Ben Simmons, Dario Saric, and Joel Embiid, and you can see why the team of so many young men who are already becoming the talk of the NBA have a bright future.

It may not happen immediately, but the pieces are in place.  For a team that has waited three years, we can at least take heart knowing we now get to see the players mature.