On the Beat: Okafor “Excited” to Team-Up with Smith

Jahlil Okafor is expected to make his return Wednesday night at Sleep Train Arena, when the Sixers tip-off against the Sacramento Kings at 10:00 PM EST.  Right knee soreness has forced the rookie to sit out the Sixers’ past two games.  “I feel ok,” said Okafor following Wednesday’s shoot-around.  “I feel good enough for me to play.”Okafor first began experiencing discomfort in his knee on December 23rd in the Sixers’ defeat to Milwaukee.  Since that evening, the roster has undergone a major change, with the team making a trade to re-install Ish Smith at point guard.  A sideline observer for the six-year veteran’s first two appearances, Okafor is now eager to be involved. “Watching Ish Smith, I got really excited,” Okafor said.  “Obviously, he’s been doing a fantastic job.  I’m really excited about the opportunity to play with him, and build some chemistry with him.” Okafor has now had the chance to witness first-hand the impact that a point guard of Smith’s caliber can have on frontcourt contributors.  In the Sixers’ last two contests, Nerlens Noel has totaled 32 points, and converted 14 of his combined 16 field goals, seven of which were the result of Smith assists.  Eleven of those 14 buckets have been classified as either a lay-up, dunk, or alley-oop.”I already watched how he gets Nerlens involved,” said Okafor.  He’s also spoken to Noel about Smith, adding, “He’s told me before [Smith] even got here he loved playing with Ish just because he’s so quicker to the ball, he’s very smart.  Just being around him off the floor, he’s a great person, so I think we’ll have some good chemistry.”The plan is for Okafor to come off the bench versus Sacramento, an “easy” decision, according to Brett Brown, given that Okafor’s gone seven days without playing a game.  The head coach doesn’t expect the “reserve” designation to be a “constant” one for the Duke product going forward. Okafor paces the Sixers in both scoring, with 17.6 points per game, and rebounding, averaging 7.9 boards per night.