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Para viajar en un mundo fugaz.. #BS25 😍

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Ayai Uyui #BS25

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Is Ben Simmons for real?

A lot has been made about the 76ers’ first overall pick of the draft, Ben Simmons. Ben went from phenom, to overrated, to sure-fire bust. In the end, all that matters is he was picked first overall to be the franchise saver for us Sixer fans. All eyes will be on Ben for years to come, but especially in this summer league. We have not seen Simmons play since March 12th and Ben came into college with a few evident flaws. One of these “flaws” I will not indulge. “Sources” and a few others (such as Tracy McGrady for some reason) have questioned the character of Simmons. I’m not sure how this can be done without actually knowing a person but who am I to judge them for judging Ben, right? However, the flaws in his game are real and they do deserve to be discussed.

For starters, Simmons’ defensive effort and ability left much to be desired. At LSU, too frequently, Simmons would be caught ball watching instead of reacting. In some instances I can almost understand why Simmons was so bad on defense. Although Ben is 6’10” he is not truly a big by nature. He is really a gigantic point guard. Simmons is like the exponentially more athletic version of Kyle Anderson when Kyle was a Bruin. And like Anderson, Simmons has trouble being an interior defender because both players are use to being on the perimeter. But unlike Kyle, Ben is a fantastic and fluid athlete which is why Simmons’ defensive showings were maddening at times.

Simmons, being more of a perimeter player, should have been great in switches caused by screens. Normally, in those situations, he was in good position initially, but almost never turned his hips soon enough or used his athletic prowess to try to recover. In some cases Simmons was most likely helping the ball handler, by serving as a wall to shield off other defenders, escorting guards to the basket. However, Summer League has been a different story. Simmons, for the most part, has been aggressive on defense. Stepping out on ball handlers during switches and moving his feet to stay in front of his man. Simmons has also come from the weak side to contest shots, and has directed traffic from the back of the defense. He still makes some technical errors but those are things that can be fixed. Him showing effort on defense is all Sixer fans needed to see.

The other major flaw in Simmons’ game was his reluctance to shoot, in particular, shoot jumpers. As his shot chart shows, Simmons almost never took shots that were not layups or dunks. And when he did, he did not make many. This is an obvious problem for many reasons. If Simmons is to become a point guard or point forward he will have to play on the perimeter on offense. And if he cannot - or will not - shoot the Sixers will be a lot easier to guard. His reluctance also revealed his lack of confidence in his shot last NCAA season, which is another red flag. If Ben Simmons is going to be an NBA Superstar he cannot be timid or nervous. He has to be persevering and confident. Out of everything said about Ben Simmons this may be the most concerning. Even in the Utah Summer League, Simmons did not seem very interested in taking many shots period. On his drives he seemed to be shying away from contact, fading away from the rim. But then, things started to change.

In the Sixers’ final game of the Utah Summer League versus the Jazz, Ben Simmons seemed to take his matchup personally. Simmons attacked Trey Lyles on multiple occasion, completing two and-1s in the second half of that game. In the Sixers’ Las Vegas Summer League debut, there was high drama (please read with a sarcastic voice in your head). The first pick versus the second. (Even though they never guarded each other, and oddly enough Brandon Ingram sat for a very large stretch in the second half). Despite the heart breaking loss, Simmons nearly put up a triple double finishing with 8 points, 10 rebounds, and 8 assists. And then, against the Bulls, Simmons played his most impressive game to date. Scoring 18 points on 7-13 shooting from the field. Buckets baby!

It was clear that the Sixers’ staff was getting through to Simmons who took five or six jump shots in that game. Most of which looked pretty good. It became clear to me that Simmons does not feel comfortable taking stand still jumpers, however. You can see him thinking about the shot mechanics of his arms. As a result, he barely gets off the ground and his jumpers fall short. This is not uncommon. I have had many teammates who “forgot to jump” because they were supremely focused on perfecting their form. This jumping problem becomes pretty evident when Simmons takes jumpers off the dribble. Because his shooting is an instinctual reaction rather than a forced decision, he is not thinking about his form or confidence and is just shooting. When he is shooting off the dribble Simmons elevates well and his shots look good. Even most of his misses were half way through the rim before spinning out.

Ultimately, us Sixers fans have a lot to be excited for. Ben Simmons is for real. His size, skill, and vision combination is rare enough for him to be special. However, if he continues to work on his flaws and get better we really could have the next Magic Johnson. We must be patient and trust the process. Simmons is still just a kid with so much room to grow. But man he is something already.