/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/48631125/usa-today-9065206.0.jpg)
The nearly two feet of snow is slowly melting, as are every NBA team's hopes of guarding Jahlil Okafor or scoring against Nerlens Noel, as the 76ers have won two, yes two, of their last three games. The league is on notice!
The Sixers haven't won three out of four games since January 10, 2015 after a five-day stretch that included wins over the (Lebron-less) Cavaliers, the Bucks, Nets and Pacers. Michael Carter-Williams and K.J. McDaniels comprised the team's starting backcourt that evening. Tony Wroten dropped 20 points off the bench. Furkan Aldemir committed three fouls. It might as well be a lifetime ago.
Despite my trolling nature on Twitter, Okafor has been fantastic offensively as of late for the red, white and blue, averaging 19.0 points per game with a true-shooting percentage of 60.3 percent over his last nine contests despite a monster usage rate of 28.3 percent as a rookie. This is combination of usage and efficiency is historic given Okafor's age, something former Liberty Ballers writer Derek Bodner alluded to on Friday:
Since acquiring Ish, Okafor's offense has been pretty special for a rookie in his role: https://t.co/m2kpol60co pic.twitter.com/cF0Yaw3mIn
— Derek Bodner (@DerekBodnerNBA) January 21, 2016
Okafor will look to continue his offense tear against a stingy, Brad Stevens-led Celtics defense that ranks third in the league in defensive rating (102.5 per Basketball-Reference) and knockout Boston for a big Philly victory. Big Jah's history is becoming increasingly intertwined with Boston, considering his late night partying situation in Beantown back in November and the fact that he made his NBA debut against the Celtics. Here's to hoping tonight plays out more like the latter for Okafor and less like the former: