Elie Okobo had a Phoenix Suns Summer League filled with high highs and low lows. So what should we take away from our first look at the French guard?
The 31st overall pick about stole the show in his Summer Suns debut, scoring nine points along with six rebounds and four assists. Suns fans were raving, but the hype died down quickly after Okobo failed to score a single basket for the rest of the tournament.
Okobo displayed all he was capable in his 21 minutes of action that opening night against the Mavericks. He played 19 minutes the next night against the Kings, and 15 against the Magic. In the playoff games, he saw about 90 seconds of action and was a DNP against the Spurs in their consolation game.
Again, Okobo was a combined 0-9 from the field in the three games after the opener.
Regardless of his struggles from the field, Okobo still proved his worth and showed why he should be logging minutes come October.
Okobo is a true point guard, perhaps forgotten in today’s Steph Curry era of play. He’s effective in ways past the scoring column. He proved that he can run an offense, and he looked like he enjoyed doing so.
He did a great job coming to the ball, managing broken down sets, and creating late in the shot clock. While he didn’t score in three games, he put up at least two assists each game, while turning the ball over twice total.
For a rookie, Okobo seemed confident in his game. He was vocal and commanding, and his aggressiveness on offense paired with his style of play in reminiscent of another French point guard (Tony Parker, not Frank Ntilikina).
Okobo prefers a slower style of play in a more disciplined game. And while he struggled shooting, he never took a head-scratcher shot that would upset a coach.
Elie Okobo figures to have some success his rookie season. He’s traditional point guard playing at a time when post point guards are scorers, but we can still expect to see him be a threat in more than just a playmaking sense.
Next: Phoenix Suns summer review: DeAndre Ayton
Kokoskov has a history of developing quality point guards, and it’ll be exciting to see what he’s able to do with Elie Okobo. The young Frenchman plays much older than his age of 20.
In his debut for the Phoenix Suns, Okobo showed he can be effective even when he’s not scoring, and he could be a solid contributor next season.