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76ers introduce Okafor: 'For as long as I've known, big men have been dominant and won championships'

Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

The Philadelphia 76ers introduced the third center acquired by the team in the past three years, Jahlil Okafor.

At the Sixers' press conference Saturday, general manager Sam Hinkie welcomed their newest 5-man along with fellow rookies Richaun Holmes and J.P. Tokoto.

As the newly-minted pros fielded questions, Okafor, a player which most pre-draft speculation indicated was going to the Los Angeles Lakers, talked about the success of big men throughout league history:

At 6-foot-11 and 270 pounds, Okafor possesses impressive offensive tools. Blessed with soft hands and superior footwork, Okafor studied a pair of legendary centers during his youth.

While many haves doubts concerning Hinke's "process," it is difficult to fault Philly's front office for selecting the best available player at No. 3 with Karl-Anthony Towns and D'Angelo Russell having been taken by the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Lakers, respectively.

At the 2014 draft, the Sixers selected Joel Embiid with the No. 3 pick. The previous summer, the team traded All-Star point guard Jrue Holiday for Nerlens Noel, who was chosen with the 6th pick by the New Orleans Pelicans.

Immediately after the Lakers nabbed Russell during Thursday's draft, Embiid, a ridiculously avid tweeter, posted the following on his Twitter account - presumably a preemptive reaction to his team's upcoming selection of Okafor:

Embiid may miss a significant amount of time due to a recent setback in the healing of his foot injury.

Hinkie told the Philadelphia Daily News' John Smallwood on Saturday he likely would have tabbed Okafor as their guy even if Embiid had a clean bill of health.

"I'd like to think we'd have had the courage to do it anyway," Hinkie said. "I knew and it's hard to unknow where things stood with Joel, but I'd like to think we'd have the courage anyway."

Sixers head coach Brett Brown is facing the tall task (pun intended) of developing the trio of big men.

One thing is certain: Jahlil Okafor is a proven talent. The 2014-15 ACC Player of the Year and NCAA champion averaged 17.3 points, 8.5 rebounds, and 1.4 blocks during his lone year in college.

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