In June 2015 the Philadelphia 76ers had the third overall pick. With that pick they choose Jahlil Okafor, however, they should have selected Devin Booker.
With consecutive years of selecting centers, the Philadelphia 76ers were in desperate need to select a guard in the 2015 NBA draft. All Sixers fans assumed that D’Angelo Russell would be available with the third pick owned by the Sixers. With The Los Angeles Lakers selecting Russell one spot before the Sixers, it had left fans disappointment. Former team president and general manager Sam Hinkie had to make a choice, who to select with the third overall pick.
Hinkie ended up selecting Jahlil Okafor with the third pick. Yes, Okafor at the time seemed to be the best talent, however, Hinkie should have selected a player with more potential than the Duke big man. Devin Booker has proven to be a much better player since both were drafted.
Okafor
Let us not dwell on Okafor’s off-court issues he had in his rookie year, or his consistent knee problem. As one with constant knee issues, I sympathize with the big man.
However, just for those that have actually watched the big man play, especially this season, he has, for the large part, played uninspired basketball. In this Youtube clip from NBAHighlightsDaily, one can see his lazy defense.
Editor’s note: It’s worth noting that Okafor recognized this specific clip and said he was going to go to a coach and work on what went wrong. He also had played the entire first quarter and said he was exhausted.
In regard to his defensive position, Okafor was relatively in the correct spots, however, he did not show energy or even that he cared to play defense. The stats don’t lie either, when evaluating Okafor, his poor defense this season alone is more then evident.
Provided by Basketball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 3/29/2017.
Besides his rebounding rate and steals, his defensive stats don’t look terrible, but when reviewing advanced stats one can see just how bad he actually is.
| Season | G | MP | PER | TS% | FTr | ORB% | DRB% | TRB% | AST% | STL% | BLK% | TOV% | USG% | OWS | DWS | WS | WS/48 | OBPM | DBPM | BPM | VORP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015-16 | 53 | 1591 | 17.1 | .536 | .248 | 8.1 | 17.8 | 12.8 | 8.2 | 0.7 | 2.9 | 12.5 | 27.3 | 0.3 | 0.9 | 1.2 | .037 | -2.6 | -1.5 | -4.1 | -0.8 |
| 2016-17 | 50 | 1134 | 14.9 | .546 | .335 | 7.9 | 15.3 | 11.6 | 9.0 | 0.9 | 3.4 | 14.3 | 24.1 | 0.1 | 1.2 | 1.3 | .055 | -3.3 | 0.2 | -3.1 | -0.3 |
| Career | 103 | 2725 | 16.2 | .539 | .281 | 8.0 | 16.8 | 12.3 | 8.5 | 0.8 | 3.1 | 13.2 | 25.9 | 0.5 | 2.1 | 2.5 | .045 | -2.9 | -0.8 | -3.7 | -1.2 |
Provided by Basketball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 3/29/2017.
Across the board Okafor is struggling defensively, and based on his limited, but efficient offensive tools, he is not a good fit for this fast-paced Sixers team. Hinkie’s whiff of a pick is not completely on him either. According to Marc Berman of the New York Post, Hinkie was pressured by ownership to select Okafor.
Booker
Fans will ask why Devin Booker should have been picked instead of Okafor. The other obvious candidate would be Kristaps Porzingis, who was selected just one pick after Okafor by the New York Knicks.
Provided by Basketball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 3/29/2017.
He is an amazing player with a bright future, the only problem is that the Sixers already have their power forward of the future in Dario Saric. Saric was already selected the year before and was traded to Philadelphia for Elfrid Payton, who the Sixers Selected two picks before. Besides Porzingis, Booker is the only player that was drafted behind Okafor that has shown star potential.
Everyone has heard about Booker’s 70-point game against the Boston Celtics this season. Besides being in an elite group players to score 70 points in a single game, he did it at the age of 20 years old. That said, one needs to look at his stats just to see just how much star potential he has.
Provided by Basketball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 3/29/2017.
Anyone who follows the NBA knows that Booker will grow and get better in time. The Phoenix Suns were blessed that he fell to the 13th overall pick of that draft. Hinkie should have done more to convince ownership that Booker was the right option.
Next: Philadelphia 76ers: Who Will Be Back 2017-2018 Season?
Comparing the stats between Okafor and Booker it is plain to see that Booker is the better player now and for the future. Whenever looking back at past drafts hindsight is 20/20, but Hinkie along with other NBA executives missed out on Booker. Hopefully current general manager Bryan Colangelo will not make a similar mistake.