The Center Position: Whaddya wanna do?

[Sarni]

I don't really see a reason why Okafor or Plumlee shouldn't be able to develop a 15-18ft jumper. Especially Okafor.
Okafor as a 20yr old rookie shot 68% from the line. Plumlee has been in the low to mid 60's from the line two out of his three years in the NBA.
I only bring up Nards being able to play well with Okafor because of Nard's ability to shoot the ball. Spread the defense out.
I think Plumlee should be able to play the 4, and Okafor the 5. Nards + Okafor might get destroyed in the P&R though.
Personally I'd prefer Noel from the Sixers out of their bigs. But I don't think they'll trade him.. Okafor is more likely.

I watched some of Okafor's highlights from this season to get the better feel of how he performed as I did not catch that many Sixers games (really better things to do at 1 AM here than watching the current Philly team). He's better from mid-range than I expected him to be, not perfect and he misses them but he's managed to pull off some sweet shots. Maybe it'd actually not be such a terrible idea to try to develop him in that area and play him next to Plumlee. I generally like him as a player, 2015 draft class looks proper solid in general. The center I'd like the most from that class is Myles Turner though, I think his potential is huge. A complete no-go in terms of availability though, unfortunately.

 

[H.C.]

I watched some of Okafor's highlights from this season to get the better feel of how he performed as I did not catch that many Sixers games (really better things to do at 1 AM here than watching the current Philly team). He's better from mid-range than I expected him to be, not perfect and he misses them but he's managed to pull off some sweet shots. I generally like him as a player, 2015 draft class looks proper solid in general. The center I'd like the most from that class is Myles Turner though, I think his potential is huge. A complete no-go in terms of availability though, unfortunately.

LMFAO

 

[Pinwheel1]

Personally I'm not sure if I'd go after Millsap along with Okafor.
I like what I've seen from Plumlee when put in a play-making position at the FT line. He just needs to develop the ability to hit a 15-18ft jumper.
I think that a lineup of Okafor/Plumlee and Okafor/Nards would fit pretty well. I believe both Plumlee and Nards would complement the low post skills of Okafor.
Defensively might come into question if teams decide to attack Nards/Okafor. But Aminu could slide up to the 4 if it's needed and one of the three bigs I mentioned could sit.

We have to plan on having Aminu get minutes at the 4. There is too much small ball going on not to have someone on the roster to cover these guys. As much as Aminu can frustrate me at times he is a great asset. He can guard bigger SF's and quicker PF's. I don't know if he needs to start in the future, but I do see him as a very good utility player. I consider him more of a 4 than a 3 in today"s NBA.

 

[Denny Crane]

I've read that Okafor is available for the right price because the 76ers like Embiid since he's been in practice after his recovery.

I see him as a terrific fit here. He was only 20 last season and proved to be a quality starter. As he gets older, I expect his defense and rebounding to improve. Especially with the right coaching.

What I don't see is what we have to offer that won't decimate us somewhere else. I don't think Crabbe and scraps comes close to getting Philly to deal. They might ask for CJ, which is reasonable from their POV.

 

[H.C.]

I've read that Okafor is available for the right price because the 76ers like Embiid since he's been in practice after his recovery.

I see him as a terrific fit here. He was only 20 last season and proved to be a quality starter. As he gets older, I expect his defense and rebounding to improve. Especially with the right coaching.

What I don't see is what we have to offer that won't decimate us somewhere else. I don't think Crabbe and scraps comes close to getting Philly to deal. They might ask for CJ, which is reasonable from their POV.

Even with Crabbe being a quality 3-d player who is young and potentially locked into a 3-4 year deal? I'm not even sure they have a wing player on Crabbe's level atm.
Crabbe + pick + Davis or even Harkless/Aminu?

 

[Sarni]

I've read that Okafor is available for the right price because the 76ers like Embiid since he's been in practice after his recovery.

I see him as a terrific fit here. He was only 20 last season and proved to be a quality starter. As he gets older, I expect his defense and rebounding to improve. Especially with the right coaching.

What I don't see is what we have to offer that won't decimate us somewhere else. I don't think Crabbe and scraps comes close to getting Philly to deal. They might ask for CJ, which is reasonable from their POV.

They won't take Plumlee because the whole idea is that they move Okafor because they have too many centers. Crabbe is not enough. Maybe a 3-team trade with Plumlee or Davis going somewhere else could work, or send Leonard there too in S&T.

 

[Sarni]

Even with Crabbe being a quality 3-d player who is young and potentially locked into a 3-4 year deal? I'm not even sure they have a wing player on Crabbe's level atm.
Crabbe + pick + Davis or even Harkless/Aminu?

They don't have anyone aside from their bigs. Covington is all right too buy far from very good. They got a lot of cap space though so I'd expect some free agents to go there.

 

[SlyPokerDog]

Hello, nice to be here, been looking at forum for a while before I decided to register. Due to 9-hour time difference (I'm posting from Poland which is like two letters away from Portland but a gazillion miles afar) I will probably be posting in what seems like the middle of the night for the rest on here. BTW as opposed to my picture I'm a Blazers fan, not a Bucks fan (the buck is reference to my family name from FB account).

I agree that at 20 he still has time on his side. His offensive play is pretty much there, not much polish needed to be added to be 'there'. On the defensive side he's not THAT bad. Personally I'd rather have him than Noel as I believe Okafor will find it easier to improve the D than Noel will find it to add offensive play to his repertoire. At least one of Philly's bigs will be available this window I believe and Blazers should have a go at whoever is made available. Okafor might be likely to be available for a trade but I fear that the price might get high here, especially if Boston come into picture (although I'd expect Boston to go hard for Horford and Whiteside and if they don't come, go all in for Cousins with Howard also in the picture). As I said, offensively Okafor would be a great choice and would have exactly the role you mentioned, a go to man when Lillard and CJ are not hitting it from the perimeter. Ideally you'd want to get a defensively solid 4 if you got Okafor. Imagine if Blazers got Millsap to go with Okafor... It's a pipedream.

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