Pacers Should Bolster Frontcourt With Former NBA Lottery Pick, Now G League Star

Jeremy Hanna | 4 Hours Ago

Jul 31, 2021; Saitama, Japan; Nigeria player Jahlil Okafor (15) grabs the rebound against Italy during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Summer Games at Saitama Super Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kareem Elgazzar-Imagn Images / Kareem Elgazzar-Imagn Images

After their loss to the Milwaukee Bucks, the Indiana Pacers have dropped to 11th place in the Eastern Conference, tied with the Brooklyn Nets.

While there are many places for the Pacers to improve, the most significant statistic is rebounding. Right now, Indiana is the third-worst rebounding team in the league, averaging 39.9 total rebounds per game.

This is especially difficult without Indiana's key big man, Myles Turner, who is out with a calf injury. This season, he is leading the team with 7.1 total rebounds per game while also averaging 16.9 points, two blocks, 1.4 assists, and 0.9 steals.

The Pacers are attempting to solve this problem with the newly signed Moses Brown. However, he hasn't gotten nearly enough play time to make an impact yet.

In the end, it looks like the Pacers have to make a move for a big man who can make an immediate difference. And it looks like the G League may have a great option right now.

Center Jahlil Okafor is currently dominating for the Indiana Mad Ants, the Pacers G League affiliate.

A former No. 3 overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft, Okafor made an immediate impact for the Philadelphia 76ers, averaging 30 minutes, 17.5 points, seven total rebounds, 1.2 blocks, and 1.2 assists per game in his rookie season.

Unfortunately, his numbers continued to regress, eventually ending up averaging 12.9 minutes, 5.4 points, 2.4 total rebounds, 0.5 assists, and 0.2 blocks per game in the 2020-21 season across 27 games.

Now, Okafor seems to be back to his rookie season standard in the G League with one goal in mind: get back into the NBA.

"Priority number one is to get back to the NBA," Okafor said per the Mad Ants Basketball social media page.

"First and foremost I'm a scorer," Okafor explained. "One of the best low post scorers, still to this day. I'm a veteran so I have a lot of experience in this league and I'm going to be a leader for the team and try to be dominant on both ends of the floor."

Okafor's G League stats definitely reflect this, averaging 17.3 points, seven total rebounds, and four assists per game.

If Okafor is able to bring these numbers back to the NBA level, this could be a huge boost for the Pacers as they look to improve their season.

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