The New Orleans Pelicans are finalizing a deal to sign center and former No. 2 overall draft choice Emeka Okafor to a 10-day contract, according to Shams Charania of Yahoo! Sports.

Okafor has been playing for the G League in Delaware this season. He is returning to the NBA for the first time since 2013 when injuries led to his departure.

Okafor was famously drafted right after Dwight Howard back in 2004 and there was legitimate debate at the time about taking him with the top pick. He now joins a New Orleans Pelicans team that is in need of some help on the interior after the injury to DeMarcus Cousins and trading of Omer Asik to the Chicago Bulls as part of the Nikola Mirotic deal.

The Pelicans were also hopeful to sign free agent Greg Monroe this week but yesterday he decided to go ahead and join the Boston Celtics instead despite New Orleans head coach Alvin Gentry offering him a starting job.

Okafor will unlikely make his way into the starting lineup but he provides big man depth for a depleted roster and one in which Anthony Davis prefers not to play all of his minutes at the center position.

Okafor played his first eight seasons in the NBA with the Charlotte Bobcats and then New Orleans Hornets before one season with the Washington Wizards in 2012-13. That last season, he played in 79 games and averaged 9.7 points and 8.8 rebounds.