Cooney: Why not play Embiid and Okafor together?

YOU WATCH the NBA long enough and you will see just about anything and everything a basketball game could possibly provide. With the athleticism and strength that players now possess, jaw-dropping and eyebrow-raising plays happen with regularity, somewhat diminishing the excitement.

Seeing a pair of 7-footers sharing the floor on the same team, however, is a sight that will always draw interest. And when the media was allowed to witness some of the 76ers' scrimmage Monday at their new Camden facility, that's exactly what was happening as Joel Embiid and Jahlil Okafor were on the same team toward the end of the scrimmage.

It lent some excitement to what has been a tough preseason for the team beset by injuries. It was actually the first time Okafor has run in a scrimmage since training camp, when he aggravated his surgically repaired right knee, which led to him being mostly sidelined for the past few weeks.

In the limited time the media was permitted to watch, the ball moved quickly and with purpose on the Embiid/Okafor team, with the two alternating time down low in the post. And when they faded away from the lane a bit, the defense parted like the Red Sea, creating inviting lanes for which to drive.

At the defensive end, one possession ended when Okafor corralled a rebound and tuipped the ball two or three times before wrapping his enormous hands around it to start a fastbreak that already had Embiid at the other end. On another possession, you saw one of the potential problems of having the two on the floor together when Shawn Long pump-faked Okafor on a 20-footer and freely drove the lane. This time, however, Embiid was there to greet the driving Long. The play was stopped before the possession finished out, but it was a nice little snippet of what could be.

Pairing big men is something coach Brett Brown has had to deal with in each of his three season's here. It started with Nerlens Noel and Spencer Hawes, went to Noel and Okafor and now to Embiid, Okafor and Noel. But with Noel most likely going to miss time at the beginning of the season with a strained groin, the focus turns to the coupling of the 7-2 Embiid and 6-11 Okafor.

We all know that the way of the NBA now is to have a power forward who has outside shooting capabilities at the offensive end and enough quickness to cover that type of player on the defensive side. Neither Embiid nor Okafor really fits that mold, but having them together may be the most tantalizing thought for this season, being as rookie Ben Simmons is going to miss significant time with a broken right foot.

But the Sixers don't have shooters. And the roster is still heavily sprinkled with borderline NBA contributors. So why not throw your two best players out there and see what happens? Why not veer away from the norm and use two huge post players with extreme offensive skills?

Keeping out of each other's way shouldn't be as hard as many think. Both are incredibly nimble on their feet and both are more than capable shooters from beyond the paint. Can't you just envision Embiid absorbing a double-team and hitting Okafor going toward the basket with just a single defender to beat? Okafor, who has been doubled practically his whole life, is more than capable of passing out of those. What better target to hit than Embiid? And maybe, just maybe, with all the attention on those two, other players who are supposed to be capable outside shooters become that, and more, when their looks are a lot cleaner.

"Transition defense is where you're most vulnerable. It's the first six seconds of a shot clock," said Brown. "So you have the first big run to the rim, have the trail big run to the foul line, nail area (middle of the foul line), you create a one-man zone and you figure it out from there. I think offensively it doesn't take much thought - you post it and you post it deep. And then you have to have spacing around it. You think it's that simple and it is that simple as far as getting the ball where you want it to go, but the rest of it isn't. The NBA is so well-coached because they come and they double from different angles. And so to space them and place the other players where you want, that's where we have to be really organized."

As much as fans don't want to hear this, the season is going to be another one defined by individual growth, not by wins. Embiid, Okafor, Dario Saric and Noel, provided they are all here for most of the season, need to learn the NBA game, whether it's playing with a fellow 7-footer or playing out of position for a bit during the season.

"I think if we can figure it out we can be a force together," Okafor said. "Joe is so skilled that he could play with anybody. I'm going to do my part to make sure he's on the floor. We did flirt with it today. We were on the same team for the majority of the time I was playing five-on-five. Everything was smooth.

"Joe is very skilled so we can put him anywhere on the floor. I'm skilled as well, so we'll figure it out. Joe and I are both excited to play together. It's something that we talked about and we're looking forward to it."

So should everyone else. Really, it's by far the most exciting element entering the season right now.

@BobCooney76

Blog: philly.com/Sixersblog