Free-agent-to-be Okafor sits again

Jahlil Okafor has been banished from the Nets rotation, turned into persona non grata. And with the young center set to hit unrestricted free agency this summer, it begs the question of whether he’ll be back.

Coach Kenny Atkinson has only used Okafor three of their 18 games since the All-Star break. And while Okafor has professed to be happy with the Nets, how will he weigh court time, money, playing style, an opportunity to win, and other factors in where he signs?

“All that goes into it,” said Okafor, who did not play in Sunday’s 108-96 loss to the Pistons. “But honestly I have no experience with this whatsoever, so I’m just trying to f inish the season strong. [I’ll have] guidance from people who’ve dealt with what I’m going to deal with, and lean on them. I really don’t know what to expect. But, at the end of the day, I want to play basketball.”

Okafor hasn’t done that much. He came to the Nets on Dec. 7 and, other than a brief cameo, didn’t start playing until nearly a month later. But he’s been yanked from the rotation since Feb. 12, and said he has no idea why.

“He’s had a little window of opportunity. We haven’t given him a great opportunity, a great section of play where you say, ‘ Man, here’s 30, 40 games.’ That’s part circumstances,” Atkinson said. “You’d have more information if he had a training camp and he had a longer time period, he’d be much more acclimated.”

For his part, Okafor has said he hadn’t discussed his lack of playing time with Atkinson since the Feb. 22 game in Charlotte, and doesn’t understand his coach’s comments regarding the need for a full offseason.

“I don’t really know what that means. I’ve been here for three or four months,” Okafor said. “Saying a full offseason would help me, I’ve been with these guys for three or four months now, done everything they’ve asked of me. I’m not sure what they want. But everybody’s treated me really well.”

The Nets don’t hold Okafor’s Bird Rights and can’t offer him more than the $6.2 million qualifying offer, which he’s unlikely to come close to getting.

Joe Harris had a team-high-tying 15 points, and has averaged 18.0 points on 64.1 percent shooting, and 55 percent from deep.