The Philadelphia 76ers’ star point guard needs to enforce his will on offense.
In watching the Philadelphia 76ers last year, it was clear: when Ben Simmons is aggressive, the Sixers are a much better team. Some games, he would come out attacking. He’d push the ball in transition, get into the paint, kick the ball out to open shooters or attempt shots close to the rim. Other games, he wouldn’t make a point of asserting himself in the first quarter; he’d get the Sixers into their offense utilizing dribble handoffs to J.J. Redick or organizing Joel Embiid post-ups.
Simmons’ passivity wasn’t always to the detriment of the team, but the general rule stood: Ben Simmons should impose his will. He’s one of the best young players in the NBA. He was an All-Star at the young age of 22 for a reason, and he should make his presence felt.
“Aggressiveness” is a difficult concept to quantify. How does one determine that a specific mindset is beneficial for a team?
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Here are three stats that show when Ben Simmons is aggressive, the Sixers win.
1. In games where Simmons scored 10 or more points in the first quarter, the Sixers were 5-0.
2. In games where Simmons had four or more assists in the first quarter, the Sixers were 11-2.
3. In games where Simmons scored six or more points and had three or more assists in the first quarter, the Sixers were 9-3.
The general rule: Ben Simmons should assert himself early.
The Sixers don’t have a guy like J.J. Redick this year, a shooter who can manufacture offense by coming off screens. Josh Richardson, Matisse Thybulle, Zhaire Smith and James Ennis are capable wing shooters, particularly when spotting up, but don’t come off screens nearly as well as Redick. That means a bigger burden will lie on Simmons to attack the teeth of the defense and kick the ball out, rather than relying on hand-offs.
The solution to Simmons’ passivity is not simply to increase his usage. He must pick his spots to be aggressive in order to score more efficiently.
Last season, Simmons was top-20 in the NBA in transition points per game, with 4.4. However, of those 20 players, only Russell Westbrook scored less efficiently on the break. Simmons was in the 18th percentile. Donovan Mitchell was in the 13th percentile, which is irrelevant to this article but will make Sixers fans happy.
For Simmons’ aggressiveness to unlock his full potential, he needs to impose his will early, take more shots, all while maintaining his efficiency. Shooting a higher percentage in transition could fix that problem.
Simmons is expected to take significantly more shots from the perimeter this season. When his shot isn’t falling, he needs to find other ways to impact the game. In games where Simmons had 4 or more offensive rebounds, the Sixers were 10-3.
When Simmons is actively looking for ways to positively influence his team, the Sixers are awesome. He did it during parts of last year. He just needs to play with that type of intensity every night.