Jahlil Okafor

Position: Center
Height: 6-10 / 208 cms
Weight: 280 lbs / 127 kgs
School: Whitney Young High School ‘14
Hometown: Chicago, Illinois

USA Basketball Notes

• Honors: 2012 FIBA U17 World Championship MVP, All-FIBA U17 World Championship Team.
• Gold Medals: 2012 FIBA U17 World Championship, 2011 FIBA Americas U16 Championship.
  
• Member of the 2012 USA U17 World Championship Team that compiled an 8-0 record en route to earning the FIBA U17 World Championship gold medal in Kaunas, Lithuania; averaged 13.6 ppg. and a tournament seventh-best 8.3 rpg., while shooting 59.5 percent (47-79 FGs) from the field to rank second among the 16-team tournament.
• Helped the U.S. U17 squad claim a pair of exhibition victories over Australia and Latvia in Las Palmas, Canary Islands; averaged 22.5 ppg. and 10.5 rpg. and was named MVP of the four-team tournament.
  
• Participated in the 2011 USA Developmental National Team training camp, held Oct. 15-16 in Colorado Springs, Colo.
• Member of the 2011 USA U16 National Team that compiled a 5-0 record, captured the FIBA Americas Championship gold medal and qualified the U.S. for the 2012 FIBA U17 World Championship.
• Started all five games and averaged a team third-best 14.6 ppg. and second-best 9.2 rpg., which ranked eighth and third, respectively, among the eight-team field; also shot a tournament second-best 71.1 percent (27-38 FGs) from the field and a tournament eighth-best 82.6 percent (19-23 FTs) from the line.
• Named to the 2011-12 USA Developmental National Team on March 24, 2011.
• Participated in the 2010 USA Developmental National Team mini-camp, held Oct. 9-10 in Colorado Springs, Colo.

College Notes

• Lists Arizona, Connecticut, Duke, DePaul, Georgetown, Illinois, Michigan State, North Carolina, NC State and Ohio State among his college choices.

High School Honors

• Associated Press All-State Class 4A second team (2012).
• All-state first team (2012).
• All-Illinois Class 4A (2012).
• Chicago Sun-Times All-Area (2012).
• All-Public League second team (2012).

High School Notes

• Attends Whitney Young High School (Ill), where as a freshman in 2010-11 he aided his team to a 20-10 record; started three of 30 games and averaged 7.0 ppg., 4.0 rpg. and 2.0 bpg.
• Lists single-game bests of 22 points versus Manley High School and 11 rebounds versus Perspective Charter School.
• Plays in the summer for Mac Irvin Fire.

Personal Notes

• Born on Dec. 15, 1995.
• Son of Dacresh Lanett Benton and Chukwudi Obika Okafor; has two younger brothers, Jamonte and Ashondre, and one older sister, Jalen.
• Distant cousin of 2004 Olympian Emeka Okafor, who also played for USA Basketball at the 2003 Pan American Games.
• Boasts a 3.4 GPA.
• Nicknames are Ja Ja, Big J and Little Sully.
• Wants to get a big dog as a pet, possibly a Rottweiler.
• First car will likely be a Honda, but would someday like to own a Cadillac Escalade.
• Tweets under the handle @jahprobound.

The Inside Scoop

• Post-basketball career ambitions: get into radio or TV broadcasting, or become a veterinarian.
• Favorite class: survey literature.
• Least favorite class: algebra.
• Is taking: honors Spanish, has been taking Spanish since the sixth grade.
• Favorite superhero: Mr. Incredible.
• Favorite Gatorade flavor/color: orange (his high school’s color).
• If he played football, he would be a: linebacker.
• Favorite takeout food: Chinese, orange chicken and vegetable fried rice.
• Favorite meal to make at home: Frosty Mini Wheats cereal.
• If not for basketball, would want to be a standout in: football.
• When he was five, wanted to be: an NBA player.
• If he could live in any city in the world, it would be: Chicago.
• Most read online newspaper: Chicago Sun-Times.
• Favorite magazine: SLAM.
• Favorite Twitter account: his own.
• Favorite Facebook page: his own.
• Piece of clothing he can’t live without: his jogging suits.
• Most prized possession: his family.
• Favorite sport other than basketball: football.
• Plays: the tuba.
• Favorite basketball player of all time: Shaquille O’Neal.
• Favorite non-basketball Olympian: Muhammad Ali.
• Strangest place ever played hoops: in a stadium in Nigeria.
• Best game ever watched: Jordan’s last game as a Bull.
• Best player ever faced: LeBron James.
• Would like to go one-on-one against: Jared Sullinger.
• Most impressive person ever met: Kareem Abdul Jabbar, “he gave me great advice about life.”
• Away from the court, enjoys: playing PS3, swimming and hanging out with his friends.
• Most people don’t know: he loves dogs and wants a house full of them.
• Most interesting place ever visited: Africa, where he was able to meet members of his family and visit a new country.
• First basketball memory: dunking on a basketball rim made from a hanger.
• This right-hander wears Nos. 22 and 33 because his father wore both of those numbers.
• Three things he would need if stranded on an island: computer, food and a boat.
• First overseas trip: when he was 12, he went to Africa and was “nervous and excited at the same time.”

USA Basketball Statistics