Did Ben Simmons Have a Great Summer League

Did Ben Simmons‘ performance in Summer League live up to the hype of being the top pick in the 2016 NBA draft, or was it just an average debut that showed little to nothing of his actually potential?

Summer League is the first time fans of the NBA get a chance to see the top picks in the most recent draft play outside of a college setting.

Before the Philadelphia 76ers selected Ben Simmons with the top pick, I wrote this article detailing why the Sixers should take Simmons over Brandon Ingram and the Summer League game between the Sixers and Los Angeles Lakers featuring Simmons and Ingram playing against each other showed this. You can read Bret Sluter’s recap of this game for a more detailed assessment, but Simmons’ 8 points, 8 assists, and 10 rebounds was clearly better than Ingram’s 7 points, 1 assist, and 4 rebounds.

Every Summer League game did a great example show casing Simmons’ strengths and weaknesses. Literally every game featured moments when Simmons would complete an amazing pass that is rarely seen by some of the NBA’s top point guards and almost never seen by a power forward, which appears to be the position Simmons is likely to play this season. Simmons’ ability to drive to the basket and draw fouls was also on display by going to the free throw at least twice every summer league game.

His ability to draw fouls didn’t over shadow his inability to shoot as much as I hoped it would. Simmons would often miss layups when contacted by a member of the opposing team, miss most of the few mid-range jump shots he took, and had an overall field goal percentage of 32 percent.

The biggest disappointment of Simmons in Summer League, was his slight dip in free throw percentage. In college Simmons’ free throw percentage was 67 percent, but in Summer League it was 64 percent. While Simmons wasn’t a great defender or showed flashes of being the next Draymond Green, he did show more effort on the defensive side of the court than he did at times during college and the great lateral quickness that makes me believe he will eventually become a good defender.

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When deciding whether or not Simmons had a great Summer League, it’s important to look at the national perspective. Ananth Pandian wrote this article ranking the top ten performers in the Las Vegas Summer League. Pandian had Simmons ranked second behind Jaylen Brown and wrote:

"“Simmons showed glimpses of his potential and also plenty of flash. Displaying amazing court vision, Simmons routinely dropped awe-inducing passes and was easily able to break down defenders with his dribbling exploits. However great Simmons’ highlights were, he frequently seemed tentative on offense, refusing to take jumpers and would often pass out after getting to the rim. Despite these issues, Simmons is legit and will likely quickly emerge as the best of his class once the regular season gets going. With averages of 12.3 points, 7.8 rebounds and 5.5 assists, Simmons made the All-NBA Summer League First Team, the first of many accolades he will surely rack up in his rookie season.”"

As Pandain mentioned, Simmons did make All-NBA Summer League First Team an honor that members of the media vote on and you can read this article on si.com to see their ballot and understand how the process works.

From a statistical perspective, Simmons did have a great Summer League. Some people complained that Simmons didn’t play enough Summer League games, but that is a false narrative when compared to other players. Simmons played six games, Ingram played five games, 2015 first overall pick and 2015-16 rookie of the year Karl-Anthony Towns played five games, and 2014 first overall pick and 2014-15 rookie of the year Andrew Wiggins played four Summer League games. Between Utah and Las Vegas’ Summer Leagues Simmons averaged 10.8 points, 7.7 rebounds, and 5.5 assists per game. Compared to Ingram’s 12.2 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 1.8 assists per game, Towns 12.8 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 2 assists per game, and Wiggins 15.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 0.3 assists per game during their time playing in Summer League after their draft.

Next: Forget Center, Philadelphia 76ers Logjam Is Roster Wide Now

If Summer League can be used to gauge a player’s potential, Simmons’ play suggest he will be come a great player and will likely be the next rookie of the year.