In light of his recent off-the-court incidents, Jahlil Okafor and those close to him and the Sixers organization will reportedly ramp up the necessary measures to keep the rookie’s name out of the headlines for the wrong reasons. But this is the third publicized issue Okafor has had in the past month alone, and it’s teetering on the edge of becoming an issue. He’s gone 7-for-23 from the field (30.4 percent) in the last two contests and has turned the ball over four times in that span.
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Okafor took to social media to apologise to fans after his latest indiscretion, saying he needs to pull his head in and focus on his basketball.
In October in Philadelphia, Okafor allegedly had a verbal exchange with a heckler at a Philadelphia club. Additionally, reports said the former Duke star was pulled over for doing 108 miles per hour on a Philadelphia bridge.
Sports Illustrated has reported that his fight in Boston will not be investigated any further by police, but it remains unclear whether he will face any further legal ramifications for the other incidents.
The report says a representative claimed Okafor was protecting himself and an unnamed teammate and they promptly left after the ugly encounter. “It’s something that I am embarrassed about”. Some critics have also suggested that a lack of veteran presence on one of the league’s youngest teams is at least partially to blame.
“If you choose to go out, of course you know we have Lance Williams”, he said. “I think the repetitiveness on the announcement exacerbates the problem”.
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Okafor has the chance to turn things around with his play on the court, as the rookie is averaging 17.5 points and 8.2 rebounds per game while shooting over 45 percent from the field this season.
