So thoughts on Noel and Okafor

[LarBrd33]

Both of them probably end up stars.  You can build a team around Noel's defense.  You can build a team around Okafor's offense.  Can you build a team around Noel's defense and Okafor's offense?...  I guess we'll have to see.

It's going to be interested to watch them develop.  I'm anxious to see if Stauskas makes an impact there.  They had him listed as probable tonight, but sat him with back spasms.  As bad as he was on the Kings, he shot 42%/42%/86% after the all-star break.  He was an elite shooter in College.  He was shooting really well for Team Canada this summer.   Boston was already doubling Okafor... Stauskas couldn't be in a better situation than he is right now to showcase what he does well.  If Stauskas becomes their threat from outside, it opens things up for the bigs. 

[oldtype]

Okafor is going to have to learn how to pass because basically every time we put double coverage on him he committed a turnover, but I was very impressed all around. You can't teach what he has.

Noel looked hilarious every time he tried to do something in the post but again, the talent is there on defense. Two very good prospects all around in terms of skillsets but they'll have to learn a lot before they become stars.

[moiso]

They're going to be very good, both of them. 

Okafor looks very Al Jefferson, and Noel looks very Tyson Chandler.

Yep, I totally agree with your player comparisons.  Both very good players, but not 1st team all nba guys like some seem to think.

[Moranis]

They're going to be very good, both of them. 

Okafor looks very Al Jefferson, and Noel looks very Tyson Chandler.

Yep, I totally agree with your player comparisons.  Both very good players, but not 1st team all nba guys like some seem to think.

Who thinks they are 1st team all nba guys.  I've never seen anyone say that about either of them.

[Donoghus]

Thought they looked good together.  Especially in the first half.  I don't see any reason why they can't coexist together.  They seemed to have some good chemistry. 

Okafor has the higher ceiling.  His touch around the rim is already very impressive for someone so young. His game should mature pretty well on the offensive end the longer he is in the league.  For what he lacks defensively, Noel picks up the slack. 

[sofutomygaha]

I said this in the game thread and I'll say it again-- when Noel was on the floor it was an even game. We were having no success inside, and everyone who did find daylight was still spooked. There were a couple of series that stood out in my mind where Amir Johnson hurried so hard to get the ball up that he missed a bunny AND an uncontested put-back. Everyone is afraid of trying to score on Nerlens Noel.

He can't dribble, and he is so laughably bad when he tried to handle the ball.

BUT

He's still an all-star. I think I'd rather have him than any other center in the East.

[sofutomygaha]

Okafor is great. He turned the ball over a lot, which is normal for a rookie and for a post player. He scores and plays to contact real nice and easy. He's going to be Brook Lopez very soon.

The 26 point debut is really nice, but when you're on the court for 38 minutes and the offense is running through you even though you cough it up about a third of the time, you're going to get your points. If he was debuting for any other team, he would have had 2-3 nice highlights and a forgettable stat line.

[Evantime34]

I think Okafor looks really good, and Noel looked really good but I don't see the fit together.

On offense I think Okafor is best as the only guy posting up in the paint, where Noel is better as the only guy rolling to the hoop surrounded by shooters.

Saric fits really nicely next to either but I think he would struggle to defend and create from the perimeter at the 3. A frontline of Okafor, Noel and Saric has spacing issues and might not even be very good defending the perimeter.

It'll be really interesting if the Sixers get a top pick and the best available player is Skal. IMO Embiid, Okafor and Noel all are best at the 5, although Noel can play the 4.

[Nikki8]

I'm far from any kind of expert but I really wanted the Celtics to find a way to get Okafor last July. I thought he was the best player in the draft. I think the Lakers will regret passing him up for Russell.

[TheTruthFot18]

I'm far from any kind of expert but I really wanted the Celtics to find a way to get Okafor last July. I thought he was the best player in the draft. I think the Lakers will regret passing him up for Russell.

Okafor was great last night. But each basket made me think of the Lakers passing on him. Not saying Russel can't be great but I think they made a mistake taking him over Okafor.

[Donoghus]

I'm far from any kind of expert but I really wanted the Celtics to find a way to get Okafor last July. I thought he was the best player in the draft. I think the Lakers will regret passing him up for Russell.

Okafor was great last night. But each basket made me think of the Lakers passing on him. Not saying Russel can't be great but I think they made a mistake taking him over Okafor.

I agree.  I've been saying this since draft night.  Given Okafor's size and how offensively polished he already was in college, I thought it was stupid that the Lakers gambled on Russell rather than Okafor who I thought was a relatively "safe" pick. 

[BDeCosta26]

Thought they looked good together.  Especially in the first half.  I don't see any reason why they can't coexist together.  They seemed to have some good chemistry. 

Okafor has the higher ceiling.  His touch around the rim is already very impressive for someone so young. His game should mature pretty well on the offensive end the longer he is in the league.  For what he lacks defensively, Noel picks up the slack.

Eh, I thought they looked pretty good defensively together. Noel is an absolute monster on that end that is so athletic and versatile that he has future DPOY potential written all over him. (I think Smart does too, fwiw) . Okafor surprised me a little bit on defense too. I had heard a lot of bad things about his defense and while it certainly wasn't fantastic, it wasn't terrible either.

Offensively, they have some real issues. Spacing is going to be a huge concern, and will limit Okafor's production over the course of a full season. One of them has to develop an automatic 18, 19 foot jumper for them to even have a shot at working out long term. It'll be interesting to see how Okafor deals with constant double teams though.

[footey]

Both of them probably end up stars.  You can build a team around Noel's defense.  You can build a team around Okafor's offense.  Can you build a team around Noel's defense and Okafor's offense?...  I guess we'll have to see.

It's going to be interested to watch them develop.  I'm anxious to see if Stauskas makes an impact there.  They had him listed as probable tonight, but sat him with back spasms.  As bad as he was on the Kings, he shot 42%/42%/86% after the all-star break.  He was an elite shooter in College.  He was shooting really well for Team Canada this summer.   Boston was already doubling Okafor... Stauskas couldn't be in a better situation than he is right now to showcase what he does well.  If Stauskas becomes their threat from outside, it opens things up for the bigs.

Noel a future star? Seriously?  He is pathetic with the ball. He can block shots. Good for him.

If Embiid is able to come back from injury (a big if), Noel will be traded fast, for a future first round pick, in all liklihood. I hope not to the Celtics. He is not very good.

[Hemingway]

There had been a lot of chatter on this blog about Okafor and Noel and whether they could play together.  Obviously it has been 1 official game, but I thought they had a decent chemistry on both ends of the floor.  They are obviously young and Philly clearly needs some more talent in the backcourt, but I came away from the game even more impressed by them.  And man Okafor is going to be a monster offensively.  Very strong first game from him.

I thought the same, both played really really well imo.

[Donoghus]

Both of them probably end up stars.  You can build a team around Noel's defense.  You can build a team around Okafor's offense.  Can you build a team around Noel's defense and Okafor's offense?...  I guess we'll have to see.

It's going to be interested to watch them develop.  I'm anxious to see if Stauskas makes an impact there.  They had him listed as probable tonight, but sat him with back spasms.  As bad as he was on the Kings, he shot 42%/42%/86% after the all-star break.  He was an elite shooter in College.  He was shooting really well for Team Canada this summer.   Boston was already doubling Okafor... Stauskas couldn't be in a better situation than he is right now to showcase what he does well.  If Stauskas becomes their threat from outside, it opens things up for the bigs.

Noel a future star? Seriously?  He is pathetic with the ball. He can block shots. Good for him.

If Embiid is able to come back from injury (a big if), Noel will be traded fast, for a future first round pick, in all liklihood. I hope not to the Celtics. He is not very good.

I don't know how the heck Embiid & Okafor could coexist, though.  If anything, I think one of those two would get moved while keeping Noel unless Philly just says the heck with it and wants to try the Twin Towers route with some major redundancies.

For the concerns that some people have about Noel/Okafor spacing, I think it would only be worse with Embiid/Okafor.