Jabari Parker urges Jahlil Okafor to focus more on ACC opener during holiday break in Chicago

After a career day Saturday against Boston College in which he poured in 28 points, eight rebounds and four blocks, freshman center Jahlil Okafor revealed that he got a little extra motivation from Bucks rookie Jabari Parker.

Like Okafor, Parker was a highly-touted freshman from Chicago expected to lead a talented Duke team last year, and the 6-foot-11 big man said Parker gave him some advice when the two hung out in Chicago during Okafor's holiday break.

"Talking to Jabari, he informed me that this is when he kind of had his drought [last year], so he just wanted me to focus even more than I have in the past," Okafor said. "I was ready to play [today]."

Okafor made seven of his 11 field goal attempts and finally shook of the free throw woes that have been his only real obstacle early in his career, going 14-of-17 from the charity stripe as well.

When asked more about his relationship with Parker, Okafor said the dynamic 6-foot-8 forward is handling his recovery from ACL surgery maturely and that the two know each other well because of their early stardom and days playing high school and AAU games in the Windy City.

"He knows I have his back." Okafor said. "He's doing fine. He's taking everything well. We hung out in high school. We both played on the same AAU team and we both played on USA Basketball, so we definitely know each other."

Despite being the No. 2 pick in last summer's NBA draft, Parker appears to still care a great deal about Duke's success. He visited the team in November in New York as the Blue Devils prepared for the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic and appears to be wanting nothing but the best for Okafor, who can only benefit from advice given by one of the few players who knows the type of pressure he feels.

Keep up with the Blue Zone for all your Duke basketball news before and after every game, and for weekly recruiting roundups that break down who will be following the massive footsteps of Parker and Okafor and joining the team in the future.