Games like tonight's are a litmus test in asking yourself this innocuous question: do I have a problem? It's one thing to justify dishing out $15 (or $5, if you've purchased it in the last couple of days) in order to watch Jahlil Okafor's first action against sub-NBA competition. It's worth it when tuning in to see Jerami Grant posterize some fool, or to witness Furkan Aldemir raining threes. But tonight's game will feature none of those.
Grant and Aldemir were left off the Vegas roster, and Okafor's getting a much-needed night off:
Jahlil Okafor, TJ McConnell and JP Tokoto will not play tonight vs the Celtics to rest. #Sixers #NBASummerLeague
— Keith Pompey (@PompeyOnSixers) July 12, 2015
Tonight's lineup should feature Pierre Jackson, playing his second summer league game after a traumatic ending to his first summer league appearance, and JaKarr Sampson, who played so awfully that people on my timeline and around me in the stands at the Thomas & Mack center openly wondered how he could be on a summer league team, let alone him playing in the second most games of any Sixer last season.
Sampson can't possibly be as bad tonight, though, and Arsalan Kazemi, bless his heart, will play with his hair and backside on fire like always. Steve Zack will also be around to replace Okafor, with the assumption that Sam Hinkie was doing his agent a favor. Regardless, he'll get an extended look.
And those looks are a big part of what summer league is about for players and teams. That does not say the same for us as fans, however. You don't need to look. If you're watching tonight, you've answered the question at the top, and you're probably not that ashamed to admit it, either. And if you need some comfort, there's going to be a bunch of people here watching right along with you.