An Apology Letter to Jahlil Okafor
Jah, we’re sorry. This was not how you wanted your career to start and we can assure you this was not what not we wanted either. Maybe it was the timing, maybe it just wasn’t meant to be, but we’re sorry. You have been the ignored child of the process. As the news broke on Halloween that we won’t be extending your contract, we knew that like a high school couple before they start college, the end of our relationship is near.
Let’s start with how we met. You could say it wasn’t love at first sight. You were a very successful college player when you were with your ex, the Duke Blue Devils. For the whole season during that 2014–2015 championship run, experts had dubbed you the consensus number one overall pick and you deserved it. But the season ended and something changed, people started hearing about these other guys, Karl-Anthony Towns and D’Angelo Russell, and hey they sounded pretty good. With Noel and Embiid on the roster, the last thing we needed was a pure center. We loved the idea of adding Russell, a quick guard with a pretty jump shot, and when Nerlens posted this picture on Instagram right before the draft, we thought he was all ours.
But on draft day, it did not go that way. We were at the Sixers draft party that night and reports kept coming out that Los Angeles might take Russell with the number 2 pick and, to the dismay of hundreds of soaking wet (it was raining) 76ers fans, they did. Then came the moment we took you.
We tried to spin it in our head by thinking, “Oh well he was the best player available. There was no way we were going to take this 7'2" Latvian kid named Kristaps” (What ever happened to him?). We were forced to pick you. This was an arranged marriage set up by the corrupt NBA lottery ping pong balls.
You looked great in Summer League and the early regular season. That spin move was in full effect as you were scoring at will, but times got tough and the honeymoon phase ended quickly. Every relationship faces hardship and our 0–16 start that year was difficult for both of us. We knew what it was like to lose games like this, but you didn’t.
So you lashed out.
Not against us, thank god, but against some terrible Boston fans who, let’s face it, probably had it coming. And then there was the speeding ticket. Going 108 on the Ben Franklin bridge? That’s pretty awesome actually and we can’t say we have not wanted to do the same, but you have to be better than that. Both these incidents happening before we even got a quarter of the way through the NBA season put us in a tough position, so we had to part ways for 2 games during your suspension.
We put you in a difficult situation that first NBA year by making you share the floor along side Sixer greats like Jakarr Sampson and Tony Wroten on a team that ended up going 10–72, a far fall for a national champion. We thought it would be a good idea to have you and Nerlens Noel, two centers who cannot shoot, play side-by-side. After your meniscus tear (insert joke about 76ers players getting hurt), the team decided to shut you down for the rest of the season so that we could get a high draft pick.
It didn’t get any easier from there. In the 2016–2017 season we had our new boo, Joel Embiid, to watch and you were unfairly compared to this 7'2" Cameroonian comedian who could post up like Hakeem and shoot like Reggie Miller. He was the fan favorite last year and you were the afterthought. And your defense, well just watch…
Then the trade deadline was approaching and it was known that the team was planning to move you. This would be a good thing for both of us as we would get compensation, you would get a team where you could get the minutes you deserve. It was so widely accepted that you were going to be traded that the Sixers held you from traveling with the team and it was reported that you had told teammates you were prepared to be moved. We were both ready to say goodbye, but the deal fell through and the 76ers traded Nerlens Noel instead.
It’s been an awkward journey since then but you have handled it well. You knew we didn’t want you but you never were rude, you never publicly trashed the organization and when you got the opportunity to play, you played hard. When Markelle arrived and FEDS (Fultz, Embiid, Dario, Simmons) became the new thing, you never complained even though it must have hurt to be left out.
On October 31st, the team decided to decline your option for the next season which sets a final date for the end of our relationship. You’ll be a free agent this summer. But you want out now, and we don’t blame you. You are a professional basketball player in the peak money-making time of his career and you have barely gotten the chance to play this season. You want the 76ers to buy you out of your contract so that you are free to sign with other teams which may happen unless we trade you. Regardless, you probably won’t be here by Thanksgiving. Our days are numbered.
You’re a talented guy and you deserved to play in a place where they will appreciate you like we never could. We’ll never forget our time together and best of luck of luck in your career. When we see you around we hope it won’t be awkward. We will be watching you Jahlil, but just as a friend.
Sincerely,
Philadelphia
