The Sixer Sense
Fansided

Ranking the Sixers: No. 2, Ben Simmons

By Rusty Gorelick

PHILADELPHIA, PA - OCTOBER 04: Ben Simmons #25 of the Philadelphia 76ers passes the ball in the first quarter of the preseason game against the Memphis Grizzlies at the Wells Fargo Center on October 4, 2017 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. 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 (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PA - OCTOBER 04: Ben Simmons #25 of the Philadelphia 76ers passes the ball in the first quarter of the preseason game against the Memphis Grizzlies at the Wells Fargo Center on October 4, 2017 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. 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 (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

Slated to be the second-best player on the Philadelphia 76ers, rookie Ben Simmons will be a crucial player, adding to Brett Brown’s run-and-gun style.

As a brief reminder of how this works, we here at TSS averaged rankings from 14 different staff members in order to get a composite list of the Philadelphia 76ers‘ best players, from No. 1 through No. 16.

Next is Ben Simmons, who comes in at No. 2.

The Philadelphia 76ers fanbase had another exercise in patience last year after Simmons broke his foot and missed the entire season. Now, the former LSU forward is back and ready to take the NBA by storm. He hasn’t even played an NBA regular season game yet, but that has not taken away from the hype surrounding him.

Fans around the NBA seem to have forgotten Simmons because of his injury, a crazy 2017 offseason, and the controversy surrounding hyped players like Lonzo Ball as they enter the league. Scouts knock Simmons for his lack of a jump shot and his perceived lack of effort on defense, but he has shown recently that his passing and movement are hard for defenses to contain, even though they usually know what he is doing when he gets the ball.

Philadelphia 76ers
Philadelphia 76ers /

Philadelphia 76ers

Ben Simmons has been great for the Sixers in the preseason so far, and his ability to run the floor, drive to the basket, and pass the ball is eye-popping. Memphis Grizzlies head coach David Fizdale raved about Simmons’ preseason debut, where the point forward dropped six points, seven rebounds, and nine assists in just 22 minutes. Simmons didn’t have a top-tier defender guarding him on Wednesday night, but even so, NBA defenses are always challenging.

NBA GMs voted Simmons as the second-favorite to win Rookie of the Year for this season, but the Australian could fall into the same predicament as Joel Embiid and Dario Saric did last season. This past draft’s top pick, Markelle Fultz, is also playing for that award, so if each has a good season, the two could split the vote which will make way for another rookie to snag the prize. Simmons doesn’t seem to care about that, though, as he said that he worries more about guys like LeBron James, Kevin Durant, and Russell Westbrook.

It’s not long until fans get to see the player who dominated the 2016 Summer League in full NBA action. He starred in the two preseason games he played in thus far, and even though growing pains will impact his inaugural season, he did make a seamless adjustment from high school to college. He averaged 19.2 points, 11.8 rebounds, and 4.9 assists in his lone season at LSU. As long as Joel Embiid stays healthy, the team won’t rely on the Aussie as the top offensive option, but the Sixers have surrounded him with a stronger supporting cast compared to the one he had at LSU, so Philadelphia 76ers fans can anticipate his points average going down and his assist tally going up.

It may be the case that Simmons has more to prove than any other young player in the league, and the mix of aggression and intelligence he showed in his two preseason games shows how much motivation he has. He took over in the intrasquad Blue X White scrimmage last Sunday, going for 14 of his 23 points in the final quarter of play to force his team into overtime.

Next: Top 30 players in Sixers franchise history

If he can take over games with his athleticism and scoring as well as his passing, the Sixers might have another rookie star on their hands.