Philadelphia 76ers: Exploring new go-to play possibilities

Simmons high-low with Embiid vs. smaller defender

The Sixers have run variations of this play more often in recent games and it works well, as you can see in the first play of this package of Simmons highlights the Sixers Tweeted after the game against the Pistons.

Simmons had a mismatch with the much smaller Bruce Brown, and it ended as most would predict when they initially saw the matchup: with a ferocious, Shaq-like dunk from the 6-food-10 point guard.

The Australian often finds himself against smaller defenders because he plays point guard, and Brett Brown should have his team feed Simmons down low to try to exploit those consistent mismatches. Either he and Embiid could do a high-low game where Simmons hits Embiid with an entry pass at the top of the key, drops down inside, posts up his defender, and then receives the ball and scores, or Brown could put Embiid in the dunker spot and clear out the paint for Simmons.

Either way, this play puts Embiid in or around the paint and certainly in a position close enough to the basket to corral offensive boards coming his way even though this play would almost always result in a dunk for Simmons.

Every team wants as many high-percentage shots as possible, and putting Ben Simmons against a guard or wing in the post will favor the Sixers every single time and lead to quite a few emphatic slams. Those can flip a game’s momentum, so employing this play could stop a cold spell for the Philadelphia 76ers.

Even though the play is not designed for Embiid, it will keep him in the interior and put him in position for a dump-off if opponents double-team Simmons, so it would probably make him happier than standing at the top of the key for long periods of time.