The Sixer Sense
Fansided

The Philadelphia 76ers Selecting Ben Simmons Saga

By Bret Stuter

Mar 23, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; LSU freshman Ben Simmons (right) sits in the front row during a game between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Milwaukee Bucks at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 23, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; LSU freshman Ben Simmons (right) sits in the front row during a game between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Milwaukee Bucks at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports /
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May 17, 2016; New York, NY, USA; Philadelphia 76ers head coach Brett Brown represents his team during the NBA draft lottery at New York Hilton Midtown. The Philadelphia 76ers received the first overall pick in the 2016 draft. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
May 17, 2016; New York, NY, USA; Philadelphia 76ers head coach Brett Brown represents his team during the NBA draft lottery at New York Hilton Midtown. The Philadelphia 76ers received the first overall pick in the 2016 draft. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports /

Brett Brown

It was during his assistant coaching days of the Melbourne Tigers that Brown would coach David Simmons, and meet wife Julie, and eventually, little Ben.

"“This is the real story behind it. Ben Simmons is the son of someone I coached for four years,” Brown said. “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. David Simmons was from Harlem, New York. He could have been a linebacker, he could have been a prize fighter,” Brown said after Tuesday’s practice. “He was a basketball player more out of athleticism and girth than he was out of finesse and skill. He was a tough, tough 6-8 and hard like an Anthony Mason-type player. His son is finesse and a 3 (small forward), 1 (point guard), 4 (power forward). Really different.”-Brett Brown"

By the age of four, Ben was competing in basketball against seven-year-olds. At seven, he played for the under-twelves.  Philadelphia 76ers’ Allen Iverson was the NBA’s reigning shooting guard and, after watching the weekly highlights program, his older brothers Sean and Liam taught their little brother Allen Iverson’s signature crossover moves. Fate, once more, linked Ben to Philadelphia.

"“The next game we went to … you’re talking about a seven-year-old, and here he is, putting it through his legs and occasionally getting it around his back,” – Ben’s older brother Liam."

And so, the future of Ben Simmons and the Philadelphia 76ers began to intermingle.

Next: Heading to the NBA Draft