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 Ben Simmons

In today's training, Doc Rivers, coach of the team, kicked Ben Simmons out of training
And shortly after, the news of his suspension for one match came
 


Ben  Simmons

Who is Ben  Simmons

 Who is Ben  Simmons  is an Australian professional basketball player for the Philadelphia 76ers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for one season with the Louisiana State University (LSU) Tigers, after which he was named a consensus first-team All-American and the USBWA National Freshman of the Year. Simmons was selected with the first overall pick in the 2016 NBA draft by the 76ers. After sitting out a year due to an injured right foot, he was named the NBA Rookie of the Year in 2018. Simmons was selected as an NBA All-Star in 2019, 2020, and 2021.

Simmons attended Box Hill Senior Secondary College in his hometown of Melbourne, Victoria, before moving to the United States to attend Montverde Academy in Montverde, Florida. In his only season in college, LSU began the season with high expectations, but they failed to qualify for the NCAA Tournament. Simmons left school to enter the NBA draft, becoming the third Melbourne-born number one overall pick (following Andrew Bogut and Kyrie Irving) in 11 years. Simmons is the son of an American-born father, Dave, who played professional basketball in Australia. A dual citizen of Australia and the United States, Simmons has played for the Australian national team. 

If given the opportunity, would you trade Zach LaVine straight up for Ben Simmons?

I would accept this trade in a heartbeat.

That is… if I were the Philadelphia 76ers.

Chicago Bulls? Um, different… story.

Ask the typical NBA fan who’s better between Zach LaVine and Ben Simmons, and most would choose LaVine. If that NBA fan happened to Australian like I am, they probably would have cheekily chosen Simmons.

But the Australian fans would be wrong as LaVine is clearly the better player.

Yes, Simmons has 2 more All-Star appearances despite being a year younger than LaVine (yes, that’s actually true. Very hard to believe), but LaVine’s stats tell a different story:

  • 3 seasons with 23+ points per game.
  • 51% from the field this season, as a non-post player. That’s impressive.
  • A staggering 42% from three this season. Not the first time LaVine had good three-point shooting numbers. 2015–16, 2016–17, 2018–19, 2019–20 and 2020–21 were 37% or more higher from three.
  • 85% from the free throw line. Room for improvement - but it’s up there.
  • 4.9 assists that season. That’s 2 less assists per game than Simmons. Let’s be real - that’s not a BIG difference.

Simmons is a good finisher, but so’s LaVine (despite being 5 inches shorter). In case you haven’t watched any of his game highlights or his dunk contest highlights, watch them now and you’ll realise how elite of a finisher LaVine is.

If I was the 76ers, I would say “Yes, please! Pleasure doing service with you”.

If I was the Bulls I would say “No way Jose!”




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