Brandon Ingram’s greatest drawback is his size. The Philadelphia 76ers need to see him bulk up before they take a stab at him with the top overall pick.
The Philadelphia 76ers won big time on NBA Draft Lottery night. Finally, since Sam Hinkie took over the team and implemented a radical rebuilding process that aimed to get the top overall pick, the Sixers obtained it, going into the night with the best odds out of the 14 teams at the first overall pick.
So, with the win on lottery night, the Sixers have the ultimate draft luxury — the ability to call their own shot. Would having the second overall pick have been just as good? Probably, yes. But now the Sixers can choose their top choice, and not have to worry about another team taking their prized possession, and not having to take the leftovers of the teams before them.
Still, the Sixers have a decision to make. Brandon Ingram and Ben Simmons are the two players who are being considered for the top overall pick (no matter what Marc Eversley says) and that’s not the easiest decision to make.
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Ben Simmons possesses a near-elite ability to score, on top of a near-elite ability to grab rebounds. He looks as if he can be a team’s point-forward, facilitating the offense even from a small forward position, if he isn’t tried out at the guard position first. On top of that, Simmons has a body that appears already NBA built, and he’s still hitting the gym every day, working on his build.
I’ve already discussed the two largest flaws from each of these two players, and the most obvious one with Ingram is his size.
Before you see Ingram take one step on the basketball court, you notice that he is lanky, and his arms are skinny. He doesn’t look like the type of player that can muscle his way to a basket, and really, he can’t.
That’s not to say that Ingram won’t be able to get to that point at some stage in his career, but since he’s not already there, the Sixers should be leery in deciding to rest their franchise on him.
Not having a shot is one thing (that’s Simmons’ greatest deficiency) and it’s a very fixable thing. But coming into the league as small as Ingram is (although it is also a fixable issue) puts him at a huge disadvantage.
He’s playing with the big boys now, going up against guys who have 5-10 years of professional experience, and guys that are in the prime of their physical career. Ingram, if he tries to do anything remotely near the paint, will be bodied hard, and will struggle to score.
Lucky for him, he does have that shot, and long arms that can get his shot above even the longest of defenders. He will be a solid defensive player as well.
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Personally, I don’t believe Ingram possesses any truly elite abilities to make up for his huge drawback. Simmons, on the other hand, does. He can score, and he can rebound, both at an elite level, at least by college basketball standards.
Watch out for size, Philly. It just might be the difference.