Official Ben SImmons Thread
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Billyhoyle
Im Not Juan Garcia
Ben Simmons could debut for 76ers after All-Star break, sources say
2:16 PM AEDT
OAKLAND, Calif. -- 76ers rookie forward Ben Simmons could make his much-anticipated NBA debut shortly after the All-Star break, league sources told ESPN.
Barring a setback in his recovery, sources say the No. 1 overall pick in the 2016 NBA draft has a chance to take the hardwood near March. There still remains the possibility Simmons sits the entire season, sources said, but his situation will continue to be thoroughly evaluated throughout his comeback quest.
During training camp, Simmons, 20, fractured the fifth metatarsal bone of his right foot and was ruled out indefinitely following surgery. His foot has completely healed, sources say.
His current rehab will be centered on gradually increasing his conditioning and on-court workload. Last week he participated in 5-on-5 drills for the first time. The Sixers organization is going about the process of bringing back its franchise player in a cautionary, delicate fashion.
The pairing of Simmons and standout center Joel Embiid is expected to give the league nightmares for years down the road.
Simmons played one collegiate season at LSU, averaging 19.2 points, 11.8 rebounds and 4.8 assists.
2:16 PM AEDT
OAKLAND, Calif. -- 76ers rookie forward Ben Simmons could make his much-anticipated NBA debut shortly after the All-Star break, league sources told ESPN.
Barring a setback in his recovery, sources say the No. 1 overall pick in the 2016 NBA draft has a chance to take the hardwood near March. There still remains the possibility Simmons sits the entire season, sources said, but his situation will continue to be thoroughly evaluated throughout his comeback quest.
During training camp, Simmons, 20, fractured the fifth metatarsal bone of his right foot and was ruled out indefinitely following surgery. His foot has completely healed, sources say.
His current rehab will be centered on gradually increasing his conditioning and on-court workload. Last week he participated in 5-on-5 drills for the first time. The Sixers organization is going about the process of bringing back its franchise player in a cautionary, delicate fashion.
The pairing of Simmons and standout center Joel Embiid is expected to give the league nightmares for years down the road.
Simmons played one collegiate season at LSU, averaging 19.2 points, 11.8 rebounds and 4.8 assists.
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I have enjoyed watching him, although he doesn't seem to have the killer instinct. (yet)
He needs to develop some outside range also which will come.
It appear's he's got the speed to blow past 90% of defenders out there off the dribble.
The future is bright in Philly that's for sure.
He needs to develop some outside range also which will come.
It appear's he's got the speed to blow past 90% of defenders out there off the dribble.
The future is bright in Philly that's for sure.
hackadeandre
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OK, at the risk of being labelled 'Un-Australian' LOL, I have compiled these stats to lay the foundation of the case that Embiid has the most chance to be a 'generational' player rather than Simmons. Don't get me wrong, I'm a huge fan of Simmons' game, however he doesn't (albeit a very small sample size) seem to have the 'single-handed' ability to improve a franchises W/L record that is required from a 'generational talent' such as Michael Jordan or LeBron James. Because of the small sample size, I'm also basing this off the 'eye test' and believe that Embiid looks like Batman on the court and Simmons looks like Robin (there's nothing wrong with that by the way). Pippen was an amazing Robin.
So far, Simmons has played 6 games without Embiid (pre-season and regular) and his record is 0-6 (.000)
The games with both Embiid and Simmons are split 2-2 (.500)
His total record is 2-6 (.250)
Embiid obviously played last year without Simmons on a team worse than this year (although that is subjective having limited stats so far, but I don't think that could be argued LOL).
His record was 13-18 (.419)
Sixers record without him was 15-36 (.294)
Sixers record the previous year to get a gauge on what he walked into was 10-72 (.122)
So, the Sixers were noticeably better (with or without Embiid) in the 2016 season compared to the 2015 season, but when Embiid was on the court they were even better than that and had a 42.5% better chance of winning than the chance they had of winning without him on the court.
Simmons has not won at all yet without Embiid on the court. Again, I'll stress that it's a small sample size of 8 games so far, but Embiid has shown so far that he can single-handedly improve the W/L record of a franchise whilst Simmons has not (yet). I put Simmons in the category of a KAT or Porzingis, awesome players who will more than likely be long-term All-Stars but don't have the ability to single-handedly change the fortunes of a franchise. I believe that Embiid's health will directly affect the fortunes of the Sixers, just like the Bulls and Cavs fortunes relied on Jordan and LeBron. Then again, he could be the next Greg Oden.
So far, Simmons has played 6 games without Embiid (pre-season and regular) and his record is 0-6 (.000)
The games with both Embiid and Simmons are split 2-2 (.500)
His total record is 2-6 (.250)
Embiid obviously played last year without Simmons on a team worse than this year (although that is subjective having limited stats so far, but I don't think that could be argued LOL).
His record was 13-18 (.419)
Sixers record without him was 15-36 (.294)
Sixers record the previous year to get a gauge on what he walked into was 10-72 (.122)
So, the Sixers were noticeably better (with or without Embiid) in the 2016 season compared to the 2015 season, but when Embiid was on the court they were even better than that and had a 42.5% better chance of winning than the chance they had of winning without him on the court.
Simmons has not won at all yet without Embiid on the court. Again, I'll stress that it's a small sample size of 8 games so far, but Embiid has shown so far that he can single-handedly improve the W/L record of a franchise whilst Simmons has not (yet). I put Simmons in the category of a KAT or Porzingis, awesome players who will more than likely be long-term All-Stars but don't have the ability to single-handedly change the fortunes of a franchise. I believe that Embiid's health will directly affect the fortunes of the Sixers, just like the Bulls and Cavs fortunes relied on Jordan and LeBron. Then again, he could be the next Greg Oden.
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^ Look at this guy @Billyhoyle BANHAMMER!!! 
Too early to call IMO.
I LOVE Embiids game. I want nothing more than for him to be healthy the rest of his career. He is a beast.
Too early to call IMO.
I LOVE Embiids game. I want nothing more than for him to be healthy the rest of his career. He is a beast.
It is a key RC though the question is how good will he be in the next 10 years he's been efficient so far its kind of scary, pick and roll game with Embiid is a nightmare to defend plus Saric is solid TRIPLE THREAT T.T.P.!!Anyone sitting on his Silver Prizms... UNLOAD NOW!!!
No way his silvers are worth what they are selling for now in ten years time!!
You can quote me on that.
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Billyhoyle
Im Not Juan Garcia
Billyhoyle
Im Not Juan Garcia
hackadeandre
OzCardTrader
OK update time as of 21/12:
Simmons record without Embiid 1-12 (.077)
Record with both playing 12-8 (.600)
Embiid record without Simmons 1-0 (1.000)
Combined record 14-20 (.412)
Combined Simmons playing record 13-20 (.394)
Combined Embiid playing record 13-8 (.619)
So the moral of the story is the Sixers (so far) are absolutely awful (even worse than last year) without Embiid playing. Again, Simmons is great but he's only stuffing the stat sheet and not impacting the W's column at all. Embiid = playoffs, no Embiid = high lottery pick.
So I'm going to put it out there, based on a third of the season gone and the above percentages, and the assumption that the current 8th seed win% will be the same by end of season (.533, 44-38 record), Embiid will need to play at least 48 of the remaining 52 games at win% of .619 for the Sixers to scrape into the 8. Can't see it happening.
Damn that Ben Simmons. My expectation was that he would bring Philly a championship in his first season. What a waste of space
To be honest, he has been asked to do a lot. He's had to carry his team in a lot of ways.
Vegas had them to win 40 games, I felt they'd fall just short and miss the playoffs.
Looks like Ben will have to get better if Embiid can't put together a full season ever.
They need more depth. Which I think they will get down the line.
hackadeandre
OzCardTrader
Hmmm not sure how to take that little bit of sarcasm LOL but I think you missed my point from the initial post I made. I'm talking about once-in-a-generation type players that come into the league every 10 or so years and how they impacted their team's success straight away from their rookie season. I'm talking about players that were/are asked to do a lot and carry their awful team. Not just to carry their team to 80-90 points and a loss and have a good portion of the team's stats, but to improve their team's success significantly with them added to the lineup. I could bore you with stats but Larry Bird was the only player (going back as far as 1979) that I could find that improved his team's success by a greater % than Embiid did in his rookie season (in the games he played and albeit a short one). I'm not trying to bash Simmons on the Simmons thread (I've already said I love the dude's game) but he is (currently) way overrated and certainly not LeBron James as he has been compared to. When all's said and done if he was considered top 50 all-time that would be a huge success for him and Australia!Damn that Ben Simmons. My expectation was that he would bring Philly a championship in his first season. What a waste of space
To be honest, he has been asked to do a lot. He's had to carry his team in a lot of ways.
Vegas had them to win 40 games, I felt they'd fall just short and miss the playoffs.
Looks like Ben will have to get better if Embiid can't put together a full season ever.
They need more depth. Which I think they will get down the line.
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Hey I love Embiid too. But he performed for what, 37 games? The season goes 82 so he has a lot to prove still.
LeBron didn't do much his first season either, and the East was a joke.
Also, Simmons aint LeBron. He's in that kind of category as far as being a skilled passing bigger guy, but nobody is really saying he's the next LeBron. Add to it that there will be a lot of "next LeBrons" just like there was many "next Jordans" that also never really got close. That's the media getting to ya.
Calling a guy "way overrated" is 100% bashing the dude.
Right now, he's actually been better than advertised. Go and check what the locals at Blowout were saying before the season. The more positive comparisons were Michael Beasly and Lamar Odom. Nobody was saying LeBron.
hackadeandre
OzCardTrader
Looks like we'll have to agree to disagree mate but I'd check that 'nobody was saying LeBron' again because it's plastered all over the internet LOL.
Is that why before the season and even during the pre-season games you could buy Simmons Prizm refractors for $150 and then once the season started he was playing great and now they're what $1500 - $2000?
Whilst I'm sure there was plenty of clickbait happening with the "next LeBron" titled, but no reasonable basketball fan would believe a word of it.
The fact that you have said he's way overrated is just a ridiculous statement. He's averaging what, 17/9/8/2 and a block.
We're talking about a Rookie, that is running his team already.
Embiid makes this team go, I've said that from the start, a huge part of that is that there aint many quality bigs in the League.
It's a bit sad how far out of the way you're going to put this guy down.
hackadeandre
OzCardTrader
Let it go dude, someone has a different opinion to you. It's no big deal. Merry Christmas
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Having watched Simmons in at least 10 games, I must say he is very pedestrian at times.
Jumping into the air and throwing wild passes that are easily intercepted.. averaging 4 TO's a game.
He gets to the lane, kicks out a pass and then he sits on the 3pt line where he is absolutely ineffective, allowing the defender to sag way off him.
He doesn't cut at the right times to assist a player being locked down on the opposite side of the floor.
Can't shoot a FT to save himself. wtf
So many deficiencies in his game... and he's still pretty much a lock for ROY!
IF he sorts out those issues above with a few years under his belt, he is going to be an absolute superstar!
As a real potential to be Australia's best ever male basketball player, I hope he works hard and stays injury free.
Then when the Sonics get a team back, he gets traded to them!
Jumping into the air and throwing wild passes that are easily intercepted.. averaging 4 TO's a game.
He gets to the lane, kicks out a pass and then he sits on the 3pt line where he is absolutely ineffective, allowing the defender to sag way off him.
He doesn't cut at the right times to assist a player being locked down on the opposite side of the floor.
Can't shoot a FT to save himself. wtf
So many deficiencies in his game... and he's still pretty much a lock for ROY!
IF he sorts out those issues above with a few years under his belt, he is going to be an absolute superstar!
As a real potential to be Australia's best ever male basketball player, I hope he works hard and stays injury free.
Then when the Sonics get a team back, he gets traded to them!
Simmons is putting up great numbers for a rookie cant deny that but its his basketball IQ that is intriguing sure he studied the game being sidelined for a year but actually showing it on the court is another thing some what surreal actually.
Turnovers are a factor though running the point that's understandable I see all these basketball analysts saying he has great poise as a rookie something that most rookies don't develop until their 2nd-3rd year in the league(sometimes longer) the NBA analysts said Simmons' game is similar to a LeBron while saying Lonzo is similar to Kidd,Magic lol my question is who has more pressure to succeed?
There have been a few sleepers in this rookie class like Donovan Mitchell who reminds me of another 13th pick that was selected by the hornets then traded but they said this Melbourne born Simmons will be something special & I have to agree he is going to be special.
Turnovers are a factor though running the point that's understandable I see all these basketball analysts saying he has great poise as a rookie something that most rookies don't develop until their 2nd-3rd year in the league(sometimes longer) the NBA analysts said Simmons' game is similar to a LeBron while saying Lonzo is similar to Kidd,Magic lol my question is who has more pressure to succeed?
There have been a few sleepers in this rookie class like Donovan Mitchell who reminds me of another 13th pick that was selected by the hornets then traded but they said this Melbourne born Simmons will be something special & I have to agree he is going to be special.
