The Sixer Sense
Fansided

Ben Simmons’ defense could be better than advertised

By Christopher Kline

SALT LAKE CITY, UT - JULY 04: A close up shot of Ben Simmons #25 of the Philadelphia 76ers during the game against the Boston Celtics during the 2016 Utah Summer League at vivint.SmartHome Arena on July 04, 2016 in Salt Lake City, Utah. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2016 NBAE (Photo by Melissa Majchrzak/NBAE via Getty Images)
SALT LAKE CITY, UT - JULY 04: A close up shot of Ben Simmons #25 of the Philadelphia 76ers during the game against the Boston Celtics during the 2016 Utah Summer League at vivint.SmartHome Arena on July 04, 2016 in Salt Lake City, Utah. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2016 NBAE (Photo by Melissa Majchrzak/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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Ben Simmons struggled defensively at LSU, but the Philadelphia 76ers‘ rookie has the physical tools indicative of somebody who can excel on that side of the ball.

When talking about Philadelphia 76ers rookie Ben Simmons, the majority of the attentiion goes to his offensive repertoire. He makes reads that some veteran point guards can’t, while his combination of size and quickness allows him to exploit matchups in a variety of different spots.

What isn’t discussed much, though, is his defense. Simmons was iffy on that side of the ball during his time at LSU, but that was almost entirely due to effort. He was asked to carry the load for a subpar Tigers squad, which essentially allowed him to slack off defensively without any major repercussions.

Philadelphia 76ers
Philadelphia 76ers /

Philadelphia 76ers

In layman’s terms, the incentive for Simmons to play all-out defensively wasn’t that great. He wasn’t vying for the NCAA Tournament and had virtually locked up the No. 1 pick well before the draft actually happened. LSU was a mere formality.

Simmons now enters the league as somebody who’s largely viewed as a mediocre defender who lacks effort. While the latter may have been true, there’s plenty of reason for optimism in regards to how much growth Simmons can show next season.

Brett Brown, in an interview with CSN Philly, was adamant in making that point:

"“When we start talking about who are we going to start and what are the matchups going to be, the transition defense is always most on our mind,” Brown said. “It would be easier if Ben could guard who guards him and you could just stay there. That’s probably not going to be the case often …How that shakes out, how that plays out with Ben on the other side of the ball, I’m not too concerned about it. I think that because of his versatility, he’s going to be able to put out a lot of fires. I think because of his foot speed and length, if he gets cross-matched on a point guard, I’m OK with that.If he gets sort of buried behind a four-man, he’s been a four-man his whole life, I’m OK with that. I think that his footwork on a five-man, he can get around and front and show his hands and take away the physical aspect of it with quickness. I just feel like he can do a lot because of his physical gifts.”"

This is something I’ve preached for a while now. Simmons’ struggles at LSU won’t have any bearing on how he performs at the NBA level. Situationally it’s different, while his personality and on-court confidence has grown tremendously over the past season.

Two-thirds of the defensive battle in hustle, and Simmons will be much more inclined to put in that energy when surrounded by multiple All-Defense caliber players on a team that’s trending towards the NBA playoffs.

In terms of his physical prowess, there’s not much to dislike. He’s a bulky 6-foot-10, yet moves with the fluidity and quickness of a guard. He’s strong enough to handle fours, crafty enough to handle fives and boasts the lateral mobility needed to stick with perimeter pieces on the regular.

That’s topped off by his instincts — which were still on full display during his brief collegiate run. While he didn’t do much in man-to-man defense at LSU, his ability to sniff out passing lanes and force turnovers still made him a disruptive force that had to be planned for.

Simmons is at his best in transition, and he’s plenty capable of starting off those fastbreaks via steals.

With Joel Embiid anchoring the paint and Robert Covington taking the opposition’s best perimeter piece, this Sixers team will have one of the higher defensive ceilings in the league. Simmons is capable of guarding one through five when asked, while Markelle Fultz‘s 6-foot-10 wingspan will allow him to maneuver around the perimeter without being a liability.

Brett Brown will have four players capable of guarding multiple positions, as well as four players whose wingspan exceeds 6-foot-10. They’ll be able to swtich at will, while the lineup variations Brown can use are far greater in number because of that versatility.

Next: Joel Embiid is ready to lead the Philadelphia 76ers

Embiid will get a lot of the credit for Philadelphia’s defensive prowess, but don’t be shocked in Simmons plays a bigger role than most expect coming in.