Coach K defends suspended Jahlil Okafor: One of 'great kids ever put on this earth'

Duke basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski must have been absolutely stunned to hear that Jahlil Okafor was involved in a fight with several people outside a nightclub in Boston last week.

When asked about the incident on Wednesday, Coach K could have said something cliche like “Jahlil made a mistake and will learn from it” or “that’s not the Jahlil I know.” But Krzyzewski, who coached Okafor for one season, went way, way beyond that.

Coack K's full quote on his former Bule Devils star Okafor:

“Look, Jah is one of the great kids ever,” Krzyzewski said. “Ever, ever, ever. And, you know, get into some situations — he needs to move on. They also need to have security. Like, when we’re with the U.S. team, we have security for everybody because all of those guys are targets. You’ve just got to be smart about that. He was not. He apologized. He is being punished.

"Look, anybody who pictures that kid as some bad kid, you’ve got to be kidding me. He is one of the most loving, good kids who has ever happened on this Earth. But he did a couple stupid things. OK, knock him, suspend him, let’s move on. But let’s not characterize him as that. He is not that.

"That kid is a special, special human being. And he is a pretty damn good basketball player in addition, too.”

We all know teenagers make mistakes, and it’s possible that the 19-year-old Okafor may be a bit misunderstood. That said, Coach K will have trouble convincing people that the Philadelphia 76ers rookie is one of the “great kids ever put on this earth” after they see the videos of Okafor throwing swings and going ballistic.

The 76ers suspended Okafor for two games and assigned a security guard to be with him when he goes out in public. Something tells us the alleged victim who is threatening to sue Okafor doesn’t agree with Coach K’s thoughts on the No. 3 overall draft pick.

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