December 02, 2015
UPDATE [5:45 p.m.] -- The Philadelphia 76ers announced that they have decided to suspend rookie center Jahlil Okafor for two games, effective immediately. Earlier on Wednesday, video was released by TMZ that show a second altercation in Boston with alleged hecklers. The fight reportedly occurred just a few minutes after an earlier incident outside a club in Boston.
Here's the Sixers statement on their decision to suspend the first-round pick from Duke:
We have made the determination to suspend Jahlil Okafor for two games, effective immediately.Jahlil is a very important part of our organization and our future. While we are disappointed with his recent actions, we have faith in him as a valued member of the Sixers. We will provide the necessary resources to support him on his journey and will do our part to help him succeed both on and off the court.
Prior to their game against the Knicks, Brett Brown spoke with the media. Here's some of what the Sixers coach had to say:
Brett Brown: "We walk that line of tough love & helping Jahlil." "Nobody is proud of this right now. We support him. He's ours. We move on."
— Molly French (@MollyFrenchCSN) December 2, 2015
#Sixers Brown: Okafor did not reveal second incident when he initially told coach about fight in Boston. 'he is embarrassed.'
— Tom Moore (@tmoore76ers) December 2, 2015
Also from Brett Brown: "We will support him."
— Brian Seltzer (@brianseltzer) December 2, 2015
The Sixers couldn't even enjoy their first win of the season for a full 24 hours.
After beating Kobe Bryant and the Lakers on Tuesday night, the Sixers woke up Wednesday morning to find out that TMZ had more footage of rookie center Jahlil Okafor fighting in the street outside a Boston night club.
This video, which reportedly took place minutes after the original incident that was also captured on film, shows Okafor clearly take a big, right-handed swing at another person. It also shows a man knocked out cold on the street, but it is unclear from the footage whether or not that blow came from the former Duke star.
From TMZ:
You can see a man gets knocked out cold in the street -- suffering gashes on his face -- but it's hard to tell who threw the punch.
A witness tells us it was Okafor who "hit the guy with a haymaker."
TMZ also reported that Boston PD is investigating the incident(s) and that "charges are likely to be filed."
Here's the video:
