Dec. 04--To whom much is given, much is expected.
Those exact words came out of the mouth of Jahlil Okafor as we sat alone in the Young High School gymnasium 20 months ago after a basketball practice. Before Okafor led his high school team to the IHSA Class 4A title, before he won an NCAA tournament championship at Duke and before he went to the 76ers with the No. 3 pick of the 2015 NBA draft.
Since he was a 14-year-old basketball prodigy offered a scholarship to DePaul, Okafor always understood that not only was his body bigger than most other players' but his burden was too.
"I can handle it," Okafor said that day in March 2014. "I feel like I'm representing Chicago every time I go on the court."
Few homegrown athletes have represented the city any better than Okafor, which makes the 7-footer's recent run of bad behavior all the more baffling and out of character. The 76ers suspended Okafor two games for his involvement in a fight outside a Boston nightclub, an incident that followed another late-night confrontation last month with a man carrying a gun and a separate speeding incident when he was clocked driving 108 mph.
Given the gravity of the latest situation -- the man Okafor allegedly hit has threatened a lawsuit, according to TMZ Sports -- the 76ers have received criticism in Philadelphia for not applying more tough love with their 19-year-old franchise player. Okafor also experienced his first bout with major-market ridicule as the tabloid front-page headline of the Philadelphia Daily News over his photo screamed: "Rocky of the Year."
Of all the people Okafor disappointed, friends and family say the list starts with himself. 76ers coach Brett Brown reported that Okafor "is ashamed." Not surprisingly, Okafor tweeted comments last Sunday along the same lines.
"I am 100 percent focused on my responsibility to the League, my teammates and fans," Okafor said on his Twitter account. "I own my choices both personally and now publicly ... I hold myself to a higher standard than anyone else ever could and I'm not proud of some of my decisions."
That didn't sound like a statement a lawyer or publicist crafted 140 characters at a time. It sounded humble and sincere, which beats defiant and angry any day. It sounded like the earnest teenager Chicago would recognize, not the out-of-control bar-hopper depicted in the TMZ video.
"He's just embarrassed because this is not who he is," said Chinyere Okafor-Conley, Okafor's aunt who is the principal at Jensen Miller Scholastic Academy. Okafor-Conley helped raised Jahlil with her brother, Chucky, Jahlil's father, after his mother died when he was 9.
"Anybody who knows Jahlil knows he is a champion and he's human and has overcome bigger and more difficult obstacles than this," Okafor-Conley said. "It's unfortunate. If you took Jahlil's name off the reports you'd have what's pretty typical of a 19-year-old college student. That still doesn't excuse it."
Nobody excuses Okafor for putting himself in those predicaments or blames the 76ers' 0-18 start for fueling any off-the-court frustration. Nobody who has known Okafor since his ascent to stardom began -- present company included -- expects this to become a trend either.
"It clearly isn't indicative of his character," Young coach Tyrone Slaughter said. "It's a youthful indiscretion, a learning experience. A lot of young kids go through this but the difference is they don't do it in the public eye. It's incredibly difficult to navigate."
If a mature rookie like Okafor can struggle navigating the NBA, it might be worth re-examining the merits of Commissioner Adam Silver's idea of mandating two years of college basketball -- a debate for another day. As for whether Okafor's conduct ever crossed the line at Young, Slaughter started answering before I finished asking the question.
"Never," Slaughter said. "He was a model person and ferocious basketball player."
Another fairly accomplished former coach of Okafor's was even more effusive.
"Jah is one of the great kids ever ... ever, ever, ever," Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "He apologized. He is being punished. He is one of the most loving, good kids who ever happened on this Earth. He did a couple of stupid things. OK, knock him, suspend him, let's move on. That kid is a special human being."
The reaction of NBA players suggested people around the league agree, and not just because Okafor averages 17 points and eight rebounds per game. Knicks star Carmelo Anthony was among several offering to reach out and share his own experiences as a youngster who "had to learn the hard way" about making smart choices.
"There comes a time you sit down with yourself, have some 'me' time and figure out what you want out of your life and career," Anthony said in New York.
Kobe Bryant, who exchanged a postgame hug with Okafor after the 76ers beat the Lakers for their first victory of the season, echoed Anthony's advice more succinctly.
"Just stay focused on the game," Bryant urged Okafor.
The game needs more Okafors. But, first, Okafor must remember his responsibility to the game -- something he always has embraced.
dhaugh@tribpub.com
