The No. 3 overall pick of the 2015 NBA Draft, New Orleans center Jahlil Okafor enjoyed a smashing pro debut, averaging 17.5 points and 7.0 rebounds as a rookie with Philadelphia. Since then he’s battled adversity in the form of injuries and a reduced playing role, along with a trade to Brooklyn during the middle of the ’17-18 campaign. Okafor signed with the Pelicans in free agency this summer, moving to the Western Conference for the first time in the league. The Chicago native discussed some of the highlights of his three-year NBA career with Pelicans.com:
Most memorable moments in the NBA: “Playing in two Rising Stars games. And at the end of first season, I made first-team all-rookie.”
Most memorable dunk in the NBA: “I don’t have one yet.”
Most embarrassing moment in the NBA: “My rookie season, we were playing Sacramento in Philadelphia, and DeMarcus Cousins was on the Kings. I was playing really well and I think my season high was 26 points. I had 26, got past DeMarcus and thought I was about to set my new career high, but he came out of nowhere and, ‘Boom!’ He blocked my shot into the stands. It was a home game, so the crowd was like, ‘Ooooh!’ I felt like everyone was staring at me.” [smiles]
Most surprising thing about the NBA as a rookie: “We went 10-72. I was coming off winning a national championship in college at Duke, so losing 72 games in a seven-month span was more than I had lost in all of my life combined. It was a situation where you realize that no matter how much you are losing, you can’t hang your head and you have to get back out there. In college, when you lose one game as a top team, it’s like the end of the world. You can’t take losing lightly, but it’s just very different (in the NBA).”
Toughest player to face at his position: “Joel Embiid. I’ve battled him a lot in practices, so I’m familiar with how he plays, but at 7-foot-3, he’s pretty unstoppable. He can put the ball on the floor, shoot. It’s hard to keep him off the foul line.”
Most underrated player in the NBA: “Caris LeVert of Brooklyn. When people ask me who is a player that is very good that not many know about, I always say he’s a guy you have to watch play. He’s extremely talented, skilled, crafty, can defend anyone and is athletic. Another guy who is underrated is T.J. McConnell of Philadelphia.”
Best uniforms in the NBA (besides the Pelicans’): “I’m a big fan of black uniforms. Cleveland had some super-dope black ones. Portland, Chicago, Brooklyn.”
Favorite road arena: “Oracle Arena, because it’s like a college atmosphere. All of the fans are always engaged in the game, very loud.”
Favorite road trips, based on the city: “Chicago, even though it’s always freezing outside when I’ve gone there to play a game. Chicago is home for me. Also Los Angeles, because it’s warm weather and you can get away from the cold.”