Philadelphia 76ers All-Decade Starting Five

Philadelphia 76ers, Ben Simmons (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)

Point Guard: Ben Simmons

By: Lucas Johson

More from The Sixer Sense

Ben Simmons was the first player that the Sixers selected first overall in the draft since Allen Iverson. Granted that Simmons is a very different type player than his predecessor, but he’s almost as unique of a player as Iverson was.

After being drafted in 2016, Simmons missed the first whole year of his career with an injury. Despite missing that time, it’s fair to say that Simmons has had the second largest impact on the 76ers in the latter part of this past decade.

At 6-foot-10, the point guard is one of a kind in the NBA. He has averaged 16.0 points, 8.2 rebounds, 8.1 assists, 1.7 steals and 0.8 blocks. He has 24 triple-doubles in three-year career. Simmons has the physical gifts to be a 20-plus point scorer, but lacks the “It” factor at the moment to push him to become a more dominate scorer and all-time great.

Still it’s hard to dismiss his other skills, despite his unwillingness to shoot from the outside and to become a more aggressive scorer. There’s been very few players at his size that can defend and pass the ball like he can.

He’s earned the Rookie of the Year award and has already made one All-Star game. He will probably become an All-Star again this season and has a legit case for being the Defensive Player of the Year.

He and Joel Embiid have been the faces of the franchise for the last couple of seasons and hopefully they can deliver a championship in the near future. Simmons is the most uniquely talented player that the Sixers have had on their roster this past decade.

Each of these players bring a unique attribute to this All-Decade starting five of the Philadelphia 76ers. Do you agree? Comment below if you believe there is someone more deserving that should be on this list.