Ben Simmons

[HotelVitale]

Quick question for all the doubters out there , 'do you think Nike who are about to throw 9 figures at Ben ( biggest shoe offer ever for a kid who has not even played an NBA game yet) think he compares to a Oden or slightly better Evan Turner'..........no I think they see a bit more than that. It's a pity these days that with greatness comes alot of jealousy and bitterness.

First, no one is 'comparing' him to Turner, a couple of us just said that his reasonable worst-case floor would be a bigger Turner. Also, these boards are for talking and thinking about prospects. Most of us have seen 10 or 15 drafts go by and we're not here to 'believe' in guys or 'hate' on them but to look and see what they are and what they might become. We've also seen a ton of great prospects flop and a ton of so-so guys flourish, and we know that hype for 19 year-olds doesn't mean much and that shoe contracts go to guys with hype. They're an investment in players who are already well-known and might become even better known. Those guys sometimes become Lebron and sometimes OJ Mayo.

Also, I'm a Sixers fan and would love nothing more than for Simmons (and any other top prospect) to be the answer to all my prayers. There's no bitterness or spite in anything I'm saying, and I have nothing for or against Simmons as a person. (Not anyone with an informed opinion is trying to rain on your parade.) I'm trying to write about what I see, not just to repeat the same things lazy journalists do.

[FreakMaster]

Lamar is the quintessential comparison, and has been for a long time now, for me with Simmons. There's more question marks with Simmons' game, but if he gets the jumper worked out, which might take him a few seasons, he will great.

Simmons seems like a draft bust, but only time will tell. A Tyrus Thomas draft pick. He has the physical tools, but does he have it upstairs?
I'm sure he'll say all the right things, and his workouts will go well enough to warrant the top pick, but it's questionable whether a team will be able to place him in their starting lineup from day 1.

[GimmeDat]

Lamar is the quintessential comparison, and has been for a long time now, for me with Simmons. There's more question marks with Simmons' game, but if he gets the jumper worked out, which might take him a few seasons, he will great.

Simmons seems like a draft bust, but only time will tell. A Tyrus Thomas draft pick. He has the physical tools, but does he have it upstairs?
I'm sure he'll say all the right things, and his workouts will go well enough to warrant the top pick, but it's questionable whether a team will be able to place him in their starting lineup from day 1.

Tyrus Thomas was a raw athlete though, a guy with physical tools but not much game or smarts. Simmons main drawing card is his actual basketball abilities, particularly his unique ball handling and vision for his size. He's quite clearly an intelligent and skilled player, not a guy who can just jump out of the gym.

[FreakMaster]

Lamar is the quintessential comparison, and has been for a long time now, for me with Simmons. There's more question marks with Simmons' game, but if he gets the jumper worked out, which might take him a few seasons, he will great.

Simmons seems like a draft bust, but only time will tell. A Tyrus Thomas draft pick. He has the physical tools, but does he have it upstairs?
I'm sure he'll say all the right things, and his workouts will go well enough to warrant the top pick, but it's questionable whether a team will be able to place him in their starting lineup from day 1.

Tyrus Thomas was a raw athlete though, a guy with physical tools but not much game or smarts. Simmons main drawing card is his actual basketball abilities, particularly his unique ball handling and vision for his size. He's quite clearly an intelligent and skilled player, not a guy who can just jump out of the gym.

I haven't seen enough of this Kid so I'll take your word for it. What worries me is that he didn't lead his team into the Tourney, and LSU had a decent recruiting class last yr. If he can't lead his team in college, how he's going to lead in the NBA remains to be seen.

[kobe_vs_jordan]

Simmons seems like a draft bust, but only time will tell. A Tyrus Thomas draft pick. He has the physical tools, but does he have it upstairs?
I'm sure he'll say all the right things, and his workouts will go well enough to warrant the top pick, but it's questionable whether a team will be able to place him in their starting lineup from day 1.

Tyrus Thomas was a raw athlete though, a guy with physical tools but not much game or smarts. Simmons main drawing card is his actual basketball abilities, particularly his unique ball handling and vision for his size. He's quite clearly an intelligent and skilled player, not a guy who can just jump out of the gym.

I haven't seen enough of this Kid so I'll take your word for it. What worries me is that he didn't lead his team into the Tourney, and LSU had a decent recruiting class last yr. If he can't lead his team in college, how he's going to lead in the NBA remains to be seen.

Its not all to rare for elite prospects to miss the tournament. Curry , Klay, Paul George, Bosh all missed the tournament before. They doing just fine in the NBA.

[FreakMaster]

Tyrus Thomas was a raw athlete though, a guy with physical tools but not much game or smarts. Simmons main drawing card is his actual basketball abilities, particularly his unique ball handling and vision for his size. He's quite clearly an intelligent and skilled player, not a guy who can just jump out of the gym.

I haven't seen enough of this Kid so I'll take your word for it. What worries me is that he didn't lead his team into the Tourney, and LSU had a decent recruiting class last yr. If he can't lead his team in college, how he's going to lead in the NBA remains to be seen.

Its not all to rare for elite prospects to miss the tournament. Curry , Klay, Paul George, Bosh all missed the tournament before. They doing just fine in the NBA.

Not sure about Klay @ Washington St, or PG 13 but Curry was a breakout during March Madness. Buddy Hield is scoring the most pts in the tourney since Steph did it back in 07 (I think that was the yr).
Bosh played in the Tourney too for GA Tech.
Other than the Kids who entered the NBA straight from H.S. I can't think of any #1 pick who didn't play in the tourney.

[kobe_vs_jordan]

I haven't seen enough of this Kid so I'll take your word for it. What worries me is that he didn't lead his team into the Tourney, and LSU had a decent recruiting class last yr. If he can't lead his team in college, how he's going to lead in the NBA remains to be seen.

Its not all to rare for elite prospects to miss the tournament. Curry , Klay, Paul George, Bosh all missed the tournament before. They doing just fine in the NBA.

Not sure about Klay @ Washington St, or PG 13 but Curry was a breakout during March Madness. Buddy Hield is scoring the most pts in the tourney since Steph did it back in 07 (I think that was the yr).
Bosh played in the Tourney too for GA Tech.
Other than the Kids who entered the NBA straight from H.S. I can't think of any #1 pick who didn't play in the tourney.

I didn't say Curry never played in the tournament. Curry team missed tournament the year he entered the draft. Georgia tech went to the tournament after Bosh left.

[FreakMaster]

Its not all to rare for elite prospects to miss the tournament. Curry , Klay, Paul George, Bosh all missed the tournament before. They doing just fine in the NBA.

Not sure about Klay @ Washington St, or PG 13 but Curry was a breakout during March Madness. Buddy Hield is scoring the most pts in the tourney since Steph did it back in 07 (I think that was the yr).
Bosh played in the Tourney too for GA Tech.
Other than the Kids who entered the NBA straight from H.S. I can't think of any #1 pick who didn't play in the tourney.

I didn't say Curry never played in the tournament. Curry team missed tournament the year he entered the draft. Georgia tech went to the tournament after Bosh left.

Well might point is, that maybe Simmons should stay in college another year and actually lead his team somewhere before NBA teams expect this Kid to develop into a franchise player who'll lead their team somewhere.

[nurseryc]

Not sure about Klay @ Washington St, or PG 13 but Curry was a breakout during March Madness. Buddy Hield is scoring the most pts in the tourney since Steph did it back in 07 (I think that was the yr).
Bosh played in the Tourney too for GA Tech.
Other than the Kids who entered the NBA straight from H.S. I can't think of any #1 pick who didn't play in the tourney.

I didn't say Curry never played in the tournament. Curry team missed tournament the year he entered the draft. Georgia tech went to the tournament after Bosh left.

Well might point is, that maybe Simmons should stay in college another year and actually lead his team somewhere before NBA teams expect this Kid to develop into a franchise player who'll lead their team somewhere.

If you swapped Ingram for Simmons, Duke would be in the final 4 right now.

[saintEscaton]

Simmons needs to figure out whether he's actually a leftie and make the switch before its too late, some habits die hard. He is actually right hand dominant as a driver. His arsenal of runners/floaters should compensate a little for his lack of a faceup game, until he can make defenders pay for sagging off of him

[HotelVitale]

Tyrus Thomas was a raw athlete though, a guy with physical tools but not much game or smarts. Simmons main drawing card is his actual basketball abilities, particularly his unique ball handling and vision for his size. He's quite clearly an intelligent and skilled player, not a guy who can just jump out of the gym.

I haven't seen enough of this Kid so I'll take your word for it. What worries me is that he didn't lead his team into the Tourney, and LSU had a decent recruiting class last yr. If he can't lead his team in college, how he's going to lead in the NBA remains to be seen.

That's not really a fair criticism of him, or at least not a subtle enough one. Simmons was a very productive NCAA player who obviously understands many aspects of the game well. He often seemed to lack killer instinct, though, didn't seem to understand how and when to turn up his game and impose his will against decent teams. But his teammates also didn't help much and seemed inferior to their competition. His team disappointed, but it's fairer to say that he wasn't able to prevent them from losing rather than that he actually caused them to lose.

Also, you're skipping a ton of steps from 'he won't be a dominant franchise guy who can lead a team to glory' to 'he'll be a bust that won't be able to contribute to a NBA rotation' (like Tyrus). 98% of NBA players are in between those two.

[FreakMaster]

Tyrus Thomas was a raw athlete though, a guy with physical tools but not much game or smarts. Simmons main drawing card is his actual basketball abilities, particularly his unique ball handling and vision for his size. He's quite clearly an intelligent and skilled player, not a guy who can just jump out of the gym.

I haven't seen enough of this Kid so I'll take your word for it. What worries me is that he didn't lead his team into the Tourney, and LSU had a decent recruiting class last yr. If he can't lead his team in college, how he's going to lead in the NBA remains to be seen.

That's not really a fair criticism of him, or at least not a subtle enough one. Simmons was a very productive NCAA player who obviously understands many aspects of the game well. He often seemed to lack killer instinct, though, didn't seem to understand how and when to turn up his game and impose his will against decent teams. But his teammates also didn't help much and seemed inferior to their competition. His team disappointed, but it's fairer to say that he wasn't able to prevent them from losing rather than that he actually caused them to lose.

Also, you're skipping a ton of steps from 'he won't be a dominant franchise guy who can lead a team to glory' to 'he'll be a bust that won't be able to contribute to a NBA rotation' (like Tyrus). 98% of NBA players are in between those two.

Nothing's guaranteed. I felt the same way about Andrew Wiggins and he's doing okay in the NBA, so you might be right about Simmons. I don't see his talent as head n shoulders above his draft class, but I haven't seen him enough (just YouTube vids)

[crazy_me_87]

Not sure about Klay @ Washington St, or PG 13 but Curry was a breakout during March Madness. Buddy Hield is scoring the most pts in the tourney since Steph did it back in 07 (I think that was the yr).
Bosh played in the Tourney too for GA Tech.
Other than the Kids who entered the NBA straight from H.S. I can't think of any #1 pick who didn't play in the tourney.

I didn't say Curry never played in the tournament. Curry team missed tournament the year he entered the draft. Georgia tech went to the tournament after Bosh left.

Well might point is, that maybe Simmons should stay in college another year and actually lead his team somewhere before NBA teams expect this Kid to develop into a franchise player who'll lead their team somewhere.

Weird way of looking at 19yo Freshman... how many No1 Picks the last 20 years have led their NCAA Teams to titles? i honestly dont know.. my guess would be less than 50% .. and i would further guess that is says nothing about them as NBA Players or leaders.. College BBALL is not suited for indiivudal superstars.. NCAA Ball is a Team Sport where coaches and systems rule.

Ben has made 1 single mistake ... he went to LSU.. If he had gone to a College with Players who would not freeze him out because they despise him for beeing "the star of LSU despite beeing a Freshman"(there are reports about most of LSU upperclassmen hating Ben for beeing a Star and would actually try to hinder him) and a Coach who would use him Properly(not as a Off Ball Post Up Center for **** sake.. he is either a Point Forward or the actual Point Guard).. Ben would be in the Final Four right now..

Also mentioning a guy like Tyrus Thomas here is baffling.
When did we start to accept clearly biased articles about Bens Character and IQ by the Same Jonathan Givony who hated on Ben even before the Season because he was a huge Labissiere stan and started the Skal hype... shows how much he knows Talent ...

Ben has gotten even more positive comments on his character and BBIQ..but those are not mentioned anymore.. why is that?
Because ONE guy on yahoo.com says Ben has Character red flags?

Sorry my perception of Ben wont change at all because one reporter who does NOT know Talent(Skal clear No1 pick... yeah right..)
and has bashed Simmons simply to push Skal..

[LakersSquad]

I think Ben will be better than Odom, but I disagree that he has better handles.

[LakersSquad]

Lamar is the quintessential comparison, and has been for a long time now, for me with Simmons. There's more question marks with Simmons' game, but if he gets the jumper worked out, which might take him a few seasons, he will great.

Simmons seems like a draft bust, but only time will tell. A Tyrus Thomas draft pick. He has the physical tools, but does he have it upstairs?
I'm sure he'll say all the right things, and his workouts will go well enough to warrant the top pick, but it's questionable whether a team will be able to place him in their starting lineup from day 1.

I'm sure Philly or LA or whoever gets him will start him. He's that talented.

[DeBlazerRiddem]

Coaches are going to have no problem starting him. He's just too smart a basketball player to keep on the pine.

[Westbreezy]

Lamar is the quintessential comparison, and has been for a long time now, for me with Simmons. There's more question marks with Simmons' game, but if he gets the jumper worked out, which might take him a few seasons, he will great.

Simmons seems like a draft bust, but only time will tell. A Tyrus Thomas draft pick. He has the physical tools, but does he have it upstairs?
I'm sure he'll say all the right things, and his workouts will go well enough to warrant the top pick, but it's questionable whether a team will be able to place him in their starting lineup from day 1.

I'm sure Philly or LA or whoever gets him will start him. He's that talented.

Both of these teams have PF's so it'll be interesting to see what LA or PHI does with him. I think both may start him at SF but not sure thats putting him in the best position to succeed.

[Jody Smokz]

How can you compare to Tyrus Thomas but then say you haven't seen enough? It only takes a game or 2 to realize they are nothing alike. He may be overhyped by some fans but dude has some serious basketball SKILLS.

Simmons seems like a draft bust, but only time will tell. A Tyrus Thomas draft pick. He has the physical tools, but does he have it upstairs?
I'm sure he'll say all the right things, and his workouts will go well enough to warrant the top pick, but it's questionable whether a team will be able to place him in their starting lineup from day 1.

Tyrus Thomas was a raw athlete though, a guy with physical tools but not much game or smarts. Simmons main drawing card is his actual basketball abilities, particularly his unique ball handling and vision for his size. He's quite clearly an intelligent and skilled player, not a guy who can just jump out of the gym.

I haven't seen enough of this Kid so I'll take your word for it. What worries me is that he didn't lead his team into the Tourney, and LSU had a decent recruiting class last yr. If he can't lead his team in college, how he's going to lead in the NBA remains to be seen.

[Spens1]

Simmons getting ripped a new one by the media in Australia for opting out of the olympics. One major station (Channel 9) said it was unAustralian

I can understand why he wouldn't because of the nba draft but it would have been a great opportunity to play against all the top players before hitting the nba as well as playing with NBA players (namely Bogut, Delly, Exum and Mills) before going to the real thing.

[GimmeDat]

I'm not really surprised given what we've heard recently that he's decided to skip the Olympics. It's his decision to do what's best for him, so I don't think you can necessarily rip into the guy, but of course people over here want to see someone whose passionate about playing for their country, especially with all the hype that's been around him the last year or two.

I would've loved to have seen him play, but so long as he's available going forward, I don't think it's a big deal. He would've been a bench guy for us this year. Let him prove himself in the NBA for a year or two and Ben should be able to walk into the national team as main guy.