Who is better, Jahil Okafor or D'Angelo Russell?

[keep-itreal]

who is better?

[Cocaine80s]

Christian Thompson

[midatlantic09]

That's like asking "which is better, spaghetti or ice cream?"

[fiddy]

Season hasnt even started yet, wtf seriously

[feyki]

For What?

[IGOTGAME]

Okafor has shown me more potential. He has hit a few jumpers and his moves look like they have translated. he also looks nba strong at 19 which means he will likely be a beast when he develops even more

[90sgoat]

Okafor has shown me more potential. He has hit a few jumpers and his moves look like they have translated. he also looks nba strong at 19 which means he will likely be a beast when he develops even more

He isn't center size though, but maybe that is fine with the small ball theme.

[ralph_i_el]

He isn't center size though, but maybe that is fine with the small ball theme.

He's 280 with a 7'5" wingspan. Gtfo

[IGOTGAME]

He isn't center size though, but maybe that is fine with the small ball theme.

he seems big enough to play center imo. he has really long arms and is getting a good share of blocks just standing straight up. I've seen him muscle out grown big centers for rebounds at 19...I think he will be fine as far as size is concerned.

edit: ^^^that guy beat me to it

[noob cake]

He isn't center size though, but maybe that is fine with the small ball theme.

Okafor 6' 10.75" without shoes, 9' 2.5" reach, 7' 5" wingspan

Towns 6' 10.25" without shoes, 9' 1" reach, 7' 3.25" wingspan

Keep on spreading that lie bro. Towns = perfect size. Okafor = "too small" for center.

[bobopenguin]

He isn't center size though, but maybe that is fine with the small ball theme.

[SwishSquared]

Both aren't inspiring much confidence, but they're a year removed from HS, so it's way too early.

Okafor has struggled in post isolations and has been getting blocked. He'll need to learn to leverage his size to move guys instead of trying to score around them. His man interior defense is better than I expected, but he's making mental mistakes positionally imo and in providing help D. His footspeed might allow him to move quickly enough to contest in the future when he rotates, but not smother guys coming down the lane (a la Nerlens Noel).

I haven't watched much of Russell so far. How's he holding up physically? I know he took a nasty fall on his tailbone and had a bone bruise on his foot. I imagine those two things might slow him down some.

I think Okafor is the better guy most likely right now, based on what I've read. Wouldn't surprise me at all if 5 years from now Russell is better.

Sidenote- gut instinct is Philly trades Okafor next summer. I think Russell is a Laker at least through his rookie deal.

[midatlantic09]

Both aren't inspiring much confidence, but they're a year removed from HS, so it's way too early.

Okafor has struggled in post isolations and has been getting blocked. He'll need to learn to leverage his size to move guys instead of trying to score around them. His man interior defense is better than I expected, but he's making mental mistakes positionally imo and in providing help D. His footspeed might allow him to move quickly enough to contest in the future when he rotates, but not smother guys coming down the lane (a la Nerlens Noel).

I haven't watched much of Russell so far. How's he holding up physically? I know he took a nasty fall on his tailbone and had a bone bruise on his foot. I imagine those two things might slow him down some.

I think Okafor is the better guy most likely right now, based on what I've read. Wouldn't surprise me at all if 5 years from now Russell is better.

Sidenote- gut instinct is Philly trades Okafor next summer. I think Russell is a Laker at least through his rookie deal.

Explain.

[CarlosBoozer]

Unless he's a complete bust, why would philly trade Okafar

You cant develop bigs that fast

[SwishSquared]

Don't want to de-rail thread so PM if you want to continue the convo beyond this post.

Explain.

Unless he's a complete bust, why would philly trade Okafar

You cant develop bigs that fast

I didn't say they wouldn't trade him if he doesn't develop or doesn't develop fast enough. It's a bold prediction and just speculation on my part. They have up to 4 first round picks next draft and likely have Saric & Embiid (although not saying much re: Joel...) joining the team next year. I bet they consolidate valuable picks + some young players in hopes of taking a leap for the 2016-2017 season by acquiring players who are more likely "superstar" caliber. I think Okafor would be a really good trade chip to accomplish this.

I doubt that they trade Noel- he's a budding beast and is already good on defense. It's more likely Noel becomes above average on offense faster than Okafor becomes above average on either offense and defense imo.

Also- MCW wasn't a complete bust and they traded him. If you value the incoming player(s)/pick(s) more than your current player(s)/pick(s), you likely do the swap. Everything Hinkie has done up to this point suggests if the right offer comes along, he'll part with a player.