Draft Profile: Isaac Okoro
Age: 19
Height: 6 ft 6 in
Wingspan: 6 ft 10 in
Weight: 225 lbs
The Sales Pitch: Big wings make the league go round. In Okoro, you have a young-for-his-class 225-pound tank who is a big-time slasher and foul magnet, despite not fully even knowing what he’s doing out there. He locks people up, plays way above the rim, and he isn’t afraid to pass on the move. There’s a reason his teams have been dominant winning at every level of basketball… he came to Auburn and made them winners as a young 18-year-old — which is easier said than done (ask Anthony Edwards) — because he makes winning plays (even if he is a poor 3-point shooter). He played mostly the 3, but in an NBA where 3 vs. 4 is becoming an obsolete debate, he’ll slide in as a floor-raising, high-motor wing who also is a lotto ticket: if you can tweak his shot and improve it, he already has all the other skills needed to be a superstar. And even if he’s not a knockdown shooter, he’s gonna draw enough free throws to offset it — he just has to be a threat.
Check out The Strickland’s 2020 NBA Draft Big Board here!
Elite Traits/Skills: On-ball defense, Free throw rate, Athleticism all very good, almost elite.
The Devil’s Advocate Argument: As good as he is at on-ball defense, with only a 6-foot-8 wingspan, he can be playing defense in someone’s jersey and if that someone is Jayson Tatum, Paul George, Ben Simmons, Khris Middleton, etc., there is a good chance they can shoot over the top of him both on the perimeter and near the hoop. He’s the height of a regular-ass shooting guard — not even a tall one! All the shoulder muscles in the world don’t change that fact. So as tempting as it is to run him out as a small ball 4 with Big PJ Tucker Energy, he’s best served as a switchable 3... and as a 3, his lack of a shot presents a bigger issue. This is a guy who shot 16% on 2-point jumpers (!!!), so he’s not hiding some untapped 3-point shot. Okoro might be a case where the reality of your jacked, coordinated, passing wing resembles Justise Winslow more than it does Jimmy Butler.
The Misconceptions: That he is just a big, raw athlete. His stats don’t show it, but he is a decent ball handler for a power wing, and is capable of passing and diagnosing things on the move quite well. There’s a difference between a raw player and a non-shooter: he is the latter, not the former.
Important Numbers:
67%: His free throw percentage.
16%: FG% on 2-point jump shots.
28%: His 3-point percentage.
.550: His VERY high free throw rate. This is a big-man type of number.
Knicks Fit: Great fit on defense and generally as a galvanizing team player. Great fit in the locker room: talent, grit, and winning mentality. On offense, committing to two hope-for-improvement shooters in Okoro and RJ Barrett would be quite a gamble. NYK would be doubling down on 6-foot-6, bully ball, passing, free throw-magnet wings, and also doubling down on shot development.
BONUS: Check out a deeper dive on Why Okoro Should Be a Knick here!
Educate yourself on some other potential Knicks: Killian Hayes, LaMelo Ball, Anthony Edwards, Onyeka Okongwu, Devin Vassell
