Jahlil Okafor knocks out man in Boston after game..

[aah555]

It was clearly a mistake. Should have known better. With that said, it happens. Before last night, everything I've heard and seen from him has been very positive. Hopefully this will be a one-time occurrence and he'll learn from this. I was very surprised to see what happened -- but it's not a big deal in the grand scheme of things as long as he takes care of his business moving forward. One of the problems with jumping to the NBA at 19 is that you're not in a supportive environment that can shield you from some of the type of stuff that happened on Wed. night.

On the note of drinking, I'd just add that I couldn't care less about that. 95% of Duke students are drinking underage -- including our basketball players mid-season. But, if you're in Jah's position, you just got to be a lot smarter about making good decisions while drinking. Here, he did something colossally dumb and is lucky that they guys he confronted were just unarmed punks -- rather than tougher guys with knives or even, god forbid, a gun.

 

[gottagonow]

We have said enough about the sillys at THR that we probably deserve all the ribbing they can dish out on this. That is except the two assholes Steat and Keysersosay who I wish Big Jah could knock them out for a month.

 

[skysdad]

It's just me and you guys can do what you want to do but I saw some of the regulars has went over to the Jah thread at THR and made a post. Guys you are like a gnat in a tornado. You're not gonna get anywhere. They got us on this one and they've been waiting a long time for it. As long as they don't put the blame on Coach K and say it's Jah that's responsible then I can deal with it. I just hope all can stay away from posting anything about Jah over there because it's just making that bon fire bigger and hotter. OFC

 

[Crank_it_loud]

I went over - not gonna stand for some of the idiocy in that thread towards Duke. I understand they're pretty messed up and we like poking fun, but a few of those guys need help. Serious help.

 

[diehardDUKIEnKY]

I may get some kick back with this statement but I don't see how we can defend Jah in this. even though he is very young he knew he shouldn't have been at hat bar. Just hope the guy he hit doesn't get all that money Jah told him he had. Still a Jah fan and hopes he has a HOF career and that some other young players learn from this as well as Jah. OFC

Wont catch any from me, the thing I keep arriving at is the word integrity... and unless he was being physically threatened or friend was being threatened then I just can't find an excuse for his actions. Being heckled isn't being physically threatened, I know I've watched plenty of high profile athletes being heckled in both a joking and we'll not so joking fashion... all they did was recognize the situation and walk away. I can't help but think bout ray rice and how he essentially his entire career with a single punch, two totally different situations but Big Jahs outcome could just as quickly be the same if he knocked out the wrong dude.

Bottom line try n do all things with integrity and you'll be fine.

I myself may catch some flack for this next comment but I've got a slightly off color sense of humor and think I may have jinked okafor :-/ say that cuz I kept joking the other day that I keep waiting on the state of Minnesota to file felony assault charges against Jah for his abuse of Kitty KAT the other night. Ha.

 

[RanDEVILman]

Not saying it wasn't his fault....but don't think this wpuldve happened on a real nba team, that really cared, and had actual veteranns that look out for and warn the rookies about this stuff

 

[sheyduke]

I watched the video. My opinion of it was dumb on both parts.
First all of Jah's friends should have put his big tail in the car. He was just arguing at first with a moron who probably doesn't know the first thing about basketball outside of tv.
Second, I'm sorry but wasn't it three surrounding him? So the kid is supposed to get surrounded let the guy get into his face and not push him away especially with two of the guys friends on each side of Jah? The guy in the green shirt swung on jah so if the friend pressed charges so should Jah.
Kids are what this was about to much balls when liquid courage is involved. Do you honestly think this kid try's this sober ?
Learn and move on and no victim has pressed charges and while he might get a suspension and fine.
If there are three people surrounding me I'm not the only one taking punches.

 

[krzyzewskiville]

I feel sorry for anyone who judges a 19 year old, let alone a wealthy one for their actions. Its disappointing, but he'll definitely learn from it.

Age is a lame cop out of an excuse to me. So under that notion, regardless of what a 19 year does we're good to excuse it, "Because they're 19?"

Listen, I will forgive Jah for this - But this is wrong, and he needs to grow up. ESPN just reported that this isn't the first time this happened - he had a gun drawn on him back in October at a night club in Philly.

From the sounds of it, Jah needs to quit going to night clubs and starting focusing on winning basketball games. He's going to get himself in more trouble than it's worth...

 

[sheyduke]

^^^ you see this a lot in "Kids" especially in law enforcement. One would think he would learn from the gun but at the same time shouldn't he be aloud to go where he pleases?
This was a case of him being recognized both parties probably under the influence and the stupidity coming out.
I also think 19 is an escape goat because he's grown however the guy kept going at him and Jah should have walked away but he's still human and the only reason this is even a story is because he's a sports figure and on sports center every other week. If people really cared why wasn't it reported by ESPN the time of the incident with the gun not now when him hitting someone is published. Just saying

 

[TRU CANE]

Can't afford it. Jamie Foxx spoke of this exactly. It's just a different time now with cameras and all, your mistakes are magnified. But also I think about what happened to Paul Pierce and how that almost turned out. Wake up kid.

 

[crazyduke3]

I'm with Kville on this.

I've never been preachy on this board before about morality but for once I will be.

I know in this place we call earth you simply can't ALWAYS avoid trouble forever, you cannot. It just exist.

But we can do ourselves a real favor by avoiding places of temptation and trouble. Clubs and bars are not the place to be. People have been drinking alcohol and their judgement grows poor. If he avoids these kinds of places, things like this don't happen. Is there nothing better he could have been doing? These kind of people are at these kind of places so it's not wise for him to have this kind of surrounding.

K has also stated this. The key to success is surround yourself with great people. Well when you surround yourself with drunks, punks, hecklers, criminals, foul mouthed people who want to incite the worst inside of us, you are not setting yourself up for success.

 

[LetsGoDuke301]

I don't think that saying he is only 19 years old is simply a scape goat. It doesn't excuse poor behavior by any means, but it does have a lot to do with the thought process. I think at 19 we all thought we were bad asses and untouchable. And most of us didn't have the money and fame to further our egos. What Jah did was ignorant and not very well thought out, exactly something you expect from 19 year olds. It's not this case that will define Okafor, it's how he learns from this and makes better decisions moving forward that will define him.

 

[skysdad]

"If you hoot with the owls at night you can't soar with the eagles in the morning." Author unknown. OFC

 

[aah555]

Okafor just needs to learn how to stop engaging with people who are trying to provoke him, and surround himself with people who can keep him away from people who want to provoke him. I don't really care about him going out, but he's got to be responsible.

I've said this before, but the notion that he needs to be sitting in his hotel room reading bible verses is very overstated. For starters, as far as I know, he's not doing anything that most sophs. at Duke aren't also doing. As a Duke alum, I know for a fact how the future doctors, lawyers, and business leaders of the world are behaving on a Saturday night -- so who am I to criticize Okafor for wanting to have some fun. Further, I know for a fact that Okafor had tremendous success last season despite regularly going out to the local clubs / bars around Duke and RTP area. And I'd add that it's not as if he was going out alone. So were his teammates. The difference, though, was that at Duke Okafor only encountered supportive people who were excited to see him -- whereas in big cities, he's running into drunk, jealous sports fans who feel as if they have carte blanche to attack him verbally. He's got to walk away. And if he's not capable of doing that, then he needs to only attend parties at people's homes where he can screen out the negative forces.

 

[sheyduke]

Jah his self said it was dumb on his part. Who here hasn't done dumb things when they were young and drinking. Like stated its just a different time.

 

[Dattier]

Okay, it this were a Tar Heel we're talking about...we would call him a thug...

Perhaps this should be a lesson for us then. If we'd be talking trash from the sports-hate-not-real-hate context, well... okay, and turn-about is fair play. If previously any of us have truly, deeply believed it, we'd be pretty hypocritical not to say the same about Jah now. Even worse, if we actually take glee from someone's very real life, off-the-court run-ins with the law, shame on us.

It's clearly not a personal relationship, but we're all far more invested in Jah than we are any Tar Heel. Some of us are inclined to give him the benefit of the doubt, or to forgive him, b/c of that investment. Tar Heel fans are the same way w/ their players. It isn't hypocritical to have favorites; it would be hypocritical to have favorites, then turn around and begrudge others for having theirs.

I think most Duke fans took K's words about Phil Ford's alcoholism to heart, recognizing it was not a joking matter, and self-policing fellow Duke fans who would use it against him. Perhaps this is a wake-up call that we should change our habits regarding rival players' missteps.

I am pleased to see Duke fans being the most vocal in criticizing Jah for this.

 

[Dattier]

Jah his self said it was dumb on his part. Who here hasn't done dumb things when they were young and drinking. Like stated its just a different time.

On the bold, I think too often that question is used to excuse the behavior since so many of us did it, too. That would be the wrong way to use it. The right way to use it would be to address it with a degree of empathy and forgiveness, but to address it all the same. It was dumb when we did it and it is still dumb now. I doubt any of us expected to be let off the hook for our youthful stupidity just b/c our parents or whatever other authorities had their own youthful stupidity in their past, and the same cycle should continue here. We all do stupid things, but we ultimately stop (or slow down) in part b/c we got called on them. Part of Jah's maturation and learning process will be spurred on by his being called on it.

 

[cameroncrazie1985]

Jah gets busted going 108 mph on a bridge. This kind of off the court issues is why college basketball and the NBA need to come together and keep players in college for a minimum of 3 years. The maturity just isn't there after 1 year. Between this and his two bar/club incidents prove this. Hope Jah gets things together.

 

[K-oach Q]

Jah gets busted going 108 mph on a bridge. This kind of off the court issues is why college basketball and the NBA need to come together and keep players in college for a minimum of 3 years. The maturity just isn't there after 1 year. Between this and his two bar/club incidents prove this. Hope Jah gets things together.

I just read this one as well as having an encounter earlier where a gun was pulled on him.

This is a lot of trouble in a short amount of time. Seems to me he is very immature and trouble is becoming a trend for the young man. All of this could be leading down a really bad path...I hope he and the people around him can gain some control.

 

[SWEc/o95]

He's an idiot...it's as simple as that. And if you think making kids stay longer in college will make them grow up beyond stuff like this...you're wrong. Grown men are doing a lot worse things in the NFL.

 

[skysdad]

Let's just hope he gets it together. He's in the lime light for sure now. OFC

 

[duhondukie]

He had better change who he is hanging around with! Old "daddy of a pro" better get him under control.

 

[skysdad]

Jah gets busted going 108 mph on a bridge. This kind of off the court issues is why college basketball and the NBA need to come together and keep players in college for a minimum of 3 years. The maturity just isn't there after 1 year. Between this and his two bar/club incidents prove this. Hope Jah gets things together.

Haven't head about the 108 deal. OFC

 

[gottagonow]

I don't wish to pee anyone off but like Dirt said, if he was a Tar Heel player (or a UK'er) he would be nothing more that a street thug, gangbanger, drunk, or drug user who hangs out in bars while under the age allowed. The similarities between Jah and PJ Harringbone might be pretty similar except Jahil is more accomplished as a player and is out of school and Harringbone was not. Big Jah has now knocked a dude out outside a bar, had a gun pointed at his head and been caught speeding over 100 mph on a bridge with a 40 MPH speed limit. Maybe he has only been caught 3 times. He will eventually end up dead if he doesn't change. Just because he attended Duke doesn't make him a good kid. Being a good citizen and a person of character is determined on and especially off the court. He's a heck of a ball player, one that Duke can be proud of from his play and the NCAA Championship to go with it but otherwise he's failing quickly. It too bad he didn't quickly mature while at Duke.

 

[skysdad]

I don't wish to pee anyone off but like Dirt said, if he was a Tar Heel player (or a UK'er) he would be nothing more that a street thug, gangbanger, drunk, or drug user who hangs out in bars while under the age allowed. The similarities between Jah and PJ Harringbone might be pretty similar except Jahil is more accomplished as a player and is out of school and Harringbone was not. Big Jah has now knocked a dude out outside a bar, had a gun pointed at his head and been caught speeding over 100 mph on a bridge with a 40 MPH speed limit. Maybe he has only been caught 3 times. He will eventually end up dead if he doesn't change. Just because he attended Duke doesn't make him a good kid. Being a good citizen and a person of character is determined on and especially off the court. He's a heck of a ball player, one that Duke can be proud of from his play and the NCAA Championship to go with it but otherwise he's failing quickly. It too bad he didn't quickly mature while at Duke.

Well said and you are correct on all you've stated. OFC

 

[gottagonow]

On the bold, I think too often that question is used to excuse the behavior since so many of us did it, too. That would be the wrong way to use it. The right way to use it would be to address it with a degree of empathy and forgiveness, but to address it all the same. It was dumb when we did it and it is still dumb now. I doubt any of us expected to be let off the hook for our youthful stupidity just b/c our parents or whatever other authorities had their own youthful stupidity in their past, and the same cycle should continue here. We all do stupid things, but we ultimately stop (or slow down) in part b/c we got called on them. Part of Jah's maturation and learning process will be spurred on by his being called on it.

Jah his self said it was dumb on his part. Who here hasn't done dumb things when they were young and drinking. Like stated its just a different time.

Sheyduke the age of 19 was likely the only thing any of us and Jah had in common. Him being famous places him under a microscope 24/7. The only persons who cared what most of us did at 19 was out parents.

 

[cameroncrazie1985]

He's an idiot...it's as simple as that. And if you think making kids stay longer in college will make them grow up beyond stuff like this...you're wrong. Grown men are doing a lot worse things in the NFL.

I'm not saying it will stop all of these things because it won't. But people mature as they age. Some boneheads don't, I'll give you that. I don't think it would hurt to make them stay. I wouldn't say I'm wrong. But, that's your opinion.

 

[cameroncrazie1985]

It

Haven't head about the 108 deal. OFC

It was brought into the public today. He got pulled over in early November. I'll try to share the article after a bit.

 

[pisgah101]

I've been quiet but I'll state my opinion. This is what happens when you hand a kid millions of dollars who has never done anything in life besides bounce a ball. A kid on his on that hasn't experienced life and doesnt understand what it takes to make it is going to be DUMB no matter what. Most kids this age still in college and or living at home with some guidance so they can "ease" into adulthood per say. All these kids leaving school early need to be made to watch a documentary on Len Bias and see what can happen.