1UPZ wrote:letsgosuns wrote:I think some of you guys are severely underestimating the value of the 4th pick and also how much McDonough probably values Knight. I do not like him but he is still a 24 year old point guard that averages 20 pts, 5 ast, and 4 rbs signed long term on a very reasonable contract. That is a good asset to have. 24 year old guards that average 20 pts a game are usually not throw-ins in a trade. Anyway, remember the 76ers are the ones that want to trade Okafor. They are the ones that supposedly really want to acquire another top five pick. The Suns or Celtics are the ones that should dictate terms. Plus I believe there is something up with Okafor if Colangelo is willing to trade a 20 year old scoring center. When would he ever do something like that? Seems sketchy to me.
Pick 4 this upcoming draft is not more valuable than a proven pick 3 player from last year..
That is how you feel though. We do not know how McDonough feels. Plus I think there are two red flags regarding Okafor. One is that he already had a small meniscus tear in his right knee so that is never good. Bledsoe has had meniscus issues and we see how serious that can be. Second is the off the court fights he was in. People can say whatever they want about it but the fact remains that it happened and it is a knock on him.
Then factor this into the equation: "On the court, Okafor was averaging 17.5 points and seven rebounds per game, which ranked him second and third, respectively, among rookies. However, he has struggled to defend at an NBA level and has occasionally been a bit of a black hole in the post. The 76ers have been significantly better with Okafor on the bench this season, according to lineup data."
http://www.sbnation.com/nba/2016/3/11/11208614/jahlil-okafor-injury-76ers-kneeNever a good sign when the team performs better with the player on the bench. Can he improve over time? Sure. But when you factor everything together, the injury, the off the court issues, and the horrible defense, it is not good. It make me seriously question why they want to get rid of him. If Okafor is as good as you and other say, why is he even available. I do not buy that Embiid can replace him line at all. Embiid has never even played one minute of an NBA game and has had serious injury problems. And Noel does not play anything like Okafor. Franchise centers do not get traded in this league ever in the second year of rookie deals. It just sounds too good to be true.