Candid to the end, Charlotte Bobcats coach Larry Brown said at his post-season news conference Friday that he’d love for center Emeka Okafor to love basketball more.
As in, use the off-season to become a better player, not just a better-conditioned athlete.
“I always tease that he has an ‘A’ in stretching, Pilates and yoga. I’d like him to have an ‘A’ in basketball,’’ Brown said Friday.
Okafor is well-known for his post-game stretching regimens and off-season conditioning experiments. Brown said he’s impressed that Okafor hasn’t missed a game in two seasons. However, Brown and the front office would like Okafor to spend more of his summer fine-tuning basketball skills.
“He’s got to work at his game,’’ Brown described. “There’s no better guy than him. I want him to have a passion (for basketball) because it ends so quickly.’’
Brown suggested Okafor might over-think: “He analyzes everything he does. I think he’s just got to play.’’
