ANALYSIS/OPINION:
On Tuesday, Kobe Bryant visits his hometown for the final time as an NBA player. The Philadelphia 76ers will be on the opposite end of the court, fresh off tying one record for futility and extending another.
The Lakers are 2-14 and are primed to let Philadelphia break into the win column after an 0-18 start. Only the 2009-10 New Jersey Nets began a season as poorly as these 76ers, who have lost a remarkable 28 consecutive games. That’s a feat unmatched by any U.S. professional sports franchise.
This season aside, Bryant can’t share much about chronic losing with the young 76ers. He has won five NBA titles, two Olympic gold medals and an NBA MVP and has been selected to play in the All-Star Game 17 times. But he has a wealth of knowledge on being a rich and famous teenage superstar, experience he should discuss with 19-year-old Philadelphia center Jahlil Okafor.
The No. 1 overall pick last summer, Okafor leads all rookies with 17.5 points and 33 minutes per game. He’s third among rookies with 8.2 rebounds and third with 2.34 blocks, but he’s tops in disturbing off-court incidents that recently came to light. There was a reported after-hours altercation in Philadelphia that included a gun pointed at his head; a reported ticket for driving 108 mph on the Ben Franklin Bridge, which has a speed limit of 45 mph; and a reported after-hours street fight in Boston, where he pushed and punched a man, with video courtesy of TMZ.
“I hold myself to a higher standard than anyone else ever could and I’m not proud of some of my decisions over the last few months,” Okafor wrote on Twitter on Sunday. “I own my choices both personally and now publicly. At this point, I am cooperating and respecting the process I have to go through.
“Going forward, I don’t want to be a distraction for my team and am grateful for the support and guidance those to me are giving. I am 100 percent focused on my responsibility to the league, my teammates and fans.”
Each episode calls Okafor’s judgment into question, although speeding is the least worrisome. There’s something about gunning powerful, expensive vehicles that gets the best of some car owners. We can’t even write it off as youthful indiscretion. The Washington Nationals’ Jayson Werth was 34 years old when he was convicted of driving 105 mph in a 55 zone.
But there’s reason for legitimate concern regarding the other reports, especially since the Boston incident occurred after the gun incident. One would hope that the potentially life-threatening situation led to a change in Okafor’s behavior. One would hope that it made him realize the danger, burden and inevitable attention that accompanies high-profile individuals when they hit the clubs. (What business does a 19-year-old have at the club, anyway?)
But one also would hope that the 76ers enacted some measures and policies to protect the face of the franchise once a firearm was brandished outside a Philadelphia bar in October. The organization has a huge investment in Okafor and shouldn’t rely solely on him for safeguarding. That’s what chaperones and bodyguards are for, not to mention veteran teammates.
If Okafor didn’t learn enough the first time he found trouble in the wee hours, that should’ve convinced the 76ers that their prized rookie needed help. Hecklers are to be expected when a team hasn’t won a regular-season game since March 25, but even if Philadelphia was 18-0 instead of 0-18, Okafor would draw the usual assortment of gold-diggers, tough guys and lowlifes who seek to benefit from an athlete’s stature.
76ers general manager Sam Hinkie has embarked on a questionable rebuilding plan that features four rookies, three second-year players, four third-year players and a 2014 draft pick, injured Joel Embiid, who has yet to play an NBA game. The lone veteran is 32-year-old Carl Landry, who is sidelined until January and has yet to establish a presence.
No one else on the 76ers is older than 24, giving them a recipe for boneheaded disasters.
There’s no guarantee that a security detail or core of veterans would keep Okafor in his room or out of the news, but that doesn’t excuse the 76ers for failing to surround him with resources to choose from. Yes, he’s ultimately responsible for his own actions, but anyone who has raised teenagers knows they can be slow on the uptake in making mature decisions — especially when they’re rich and famous ballers.
Bryant was 24 when he had an epiphany, sparked by a woman’s accusation that he sexually assaulted her in his Colorado hotel room. The case was dropped after she refused to testify; Bryant later settled a civil suit and publicly apologized but admitted no guilt.
“I started to consider the mortality of what I was doing,” Bryant told GQ in February. “What’s important? What’s not important?’”
The first answer for Okafor is being healthy and productive. The second is clubbing and defending his pride. Maybe Bryant can take a few minutes on Tuesday to explain that to him. Hinkie should set it up.
Afterward, the GM should assign security and sign a veteran or two to help Okafor grow up.
• Deron Snyder can be reached at deronsnyder@gmail.com.
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