Slow Build
This is not to say that this is a square peg trying to be fitted into a round hole. Rather, it’s more akin to having a skeleton key, and trying to determine which lock to unlock first. You see, Simmons has been indoctrinated into the world of basketball from birth. He’s never known a world without it.
That familiarity has given the rookie a comprehension of what each player’s role is on the basketball court. One of the fundamentals of leading is a requirement to understand the roles of those being led. Simmons understands the basketball court. That’s step one.
But the trust required to run a team has yet to begin. Who will be on the court, how will they handle pressure by the defense, which direction will they break? Virtually every tendancy of a player defines where they will expect the ball. With someone as gifted at passing as Ben Simmons, that is important information.
But don’t expect Brown to run Simmons at point guard initially. The team signed up Sergio Rodriguez to run the point guard position as a segue to Simmons assuming the point guard role. But that slow deliberate approach is more than just to slow down the game for the point man.
The entire lineup will be new to the coaching staff. The limits of last seasons 14 man roster which fought through multiple injuries on mulitple occasions is behind the team now. Those factors limited Brown’s offense to a base vanilla scheme.
Vanilla is a terrible flavor for an NBA playbook.
This team may start out with a simple approach, but the plays will layer in options and complexity, giving the offense more looks and more opportunities to score.
Next: It's Still Basketball