June 23, 2016
In the end, it was just a formality. I knew it, you knew it, we all knew what name Adam Silver was going to say first at Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
The Sixers got the 2016 NBA Draft underway on Thursday night by selecting Ben Simmons with the first-overall pick. And even though he knew the outcome like everyone else, the 6’10” LSU point forward maintained that his legs were shaking as he walked onto the stage.
"It honestly feels like all this pressure just has hopped off me," Simmons told reporters in Brooklyn. "Now I can relax, but now I know where I'm going to be. More importantly, I know where I'm headed and know I can really start working on what I need to work on for the team."
For the fourth consecutive year, the Sixers took a frontcourt player with their first overall selection, although Simmons projects as more of a 4 with point guard skills than centers Nerlens Noel (2013), Joel Embiid (2014), and Jahlil Okafor (2015).
When asked what position Simmons will play, president of basketball operations Bryan Colangelo said the best way to characterize him is simply as "a basketball player." Sixers head coach Brett Brown mentioned that while it's tempting to play Simmons as a true point guard, he'll guard and play the 4 to start his career.
"He's a mature individual," Colangelo said. "He's physically developed. He's going to make the players on the court that he plays with better. That's one of the key characteristics or traits that we liked about Ben."
Simmons, the native of Australia who will turn 20 next month, had truly exceptional stats at LSU: 19.2 points per game, 11.8 rebounds per game, and 4.8 assists per game on 56 percent shooting. Simmons’ court vision is seen as his greatest asset.
Ben Simmons averaged more points than John Wall, more rebounds than Kevin Love and more assists than Steph Curry. He's pretty damn good.
— Jay Bilas (@JayBilas) June 23, 2016
One of the major knocks against Simmons is the stunning lack of team success he experienced at LSU. His team stumbled to a 19-14 record and failed to make the NCAA Tournament. Simmons becomes the first overall pick (college player, of course) that failed to make the Big Dance in his draft season since Pacific’s Michael Olowokandi in 1998. That’s not exactly the greatest company, and the Sixers are undoubtedly hoping that Simmons’ career far surpasses the Kandi Man’s.
"I always want to be the best player," Simmons said. "They selected me, so it means a lot. They believe in what I can bring to the franchise."
Before the draft, the Sixers already had a major connection to Simmons. Long before the team had the top overall pick, Brown was being asked questions about the LSU product. Brown, who cut his teeth coaching in Australia, coached Simmons’ father (Dave, a New York native) almost 30 years ago down under.
“I was his dad’s assistant coach when I was with the Melbourne Tigers and his mom was the head cheerleader and then here comes Ben Simmons,” Brown said back in November.
Simmons said that Brown has known him his entire life, but his earliest memory was at 13 years old at an Australian national team practice. Brown, then the head coach of the Boomers, told Simmons to keep working.
Simmons becomes the second Australian top-overall pick (Andrew Bogut, 2005) and the first Sixers top pick since Georgetown’s Allen Iverson 20 years ago. That one, of course, turned out just fine for the organization. Philadelphia’s other first pick was Doug Collins back in 1973.
When the Sixers won the NBA Draft Lottery in May, there was a healthy two-player debate over who the number one pick should ultimately be: Simmons or skinny Duke swingman Brandon Ingram, who the team brought in for an official workout. By some, Ingram’s scoring was seen as a better fit with the current roster. Others pointed out that the current roster won 10 games in 2015-16 and that the Sixers should take the best player available, regardless of position.
Over the last few weeks, it became clearer that the Sixers were zeroing in on Simmons, who should make a more immediate impact of the two players. Ingram was to be selected by the Los Angeles Lakers with the second-overall pick.
"We just felt for us, Ben's versatility and physicality combined with how we feel we can grow his skill package, especially shooting, is going to make him different, very different," Brown said.
The Sixers were finally able to bring Simmons in for a workout at their practice facility on Tuesday, sealing the deal. They were the only team he worked out for.
The major concerning on-court area of Simmons’ game is his lack of a jump shot. After only going 1 of 3 from beyond the arc his freshman year, it’s probably fair to characterize it as such. While it was impressive that Simmons was a super-efficient scorer by simply getting to the basket whenever he wanted, sophisticated NBA defenses have much better athletes.
Refining that jumper is critical and will take a ton of work, but if Simmons can make teams pay from 15 to 20 feet when defenders are backing off him, watch out.
"They've seen me make it, so I mean, there's a lot of work that goes into it," Simmons said. "There's always going to be people who say you can't do things, but obviously I've worked hard enough to get here, and I'm blessed."
Overall, it was a night filled with excitement for the Sixer
"I think that the city of Philadelphia, the fans are going to be extremely pleased with what they see out of Ben for hopefully the next decade-plus," Colangelo said. "This is a great starting point for this stage of evolution of this franchise."
Follow Rich on Twitter: @rich_hofmann
