Philadelphia 76ers All-Star forward Ben Simmons can do it all. The 6-foot-10 dynamo can score, he’s an elite defender, he has elite vision for a guy his size, and he can impact a game in so many ways.
One thing that still hounds him to this day is his lack of a jump shot. It is the one thing holding him and the team back.
He did show off more of a willingness to shoot in the scrimmage games as he was able to knock one down in their scrimmage opener against the Memphis Grizzlies. In fact, he took two 3-pointers in that game. The thing is, he hasn’t taken any shots from deep since then.
“I went back and studied the game (against the Indiana Pacers),” said coach Brett Brown. “There was one time where I thought ‘Yep, you could’ve fired a perimeter shot’ and it wasn’t even really a three as I remember it. It’s not on my mind like it is everybody else’s. I think he has chewed up space when people sag in. He’s chewed up space and driven in.”
Maybe Simmons is still struggling to really fire it from deep? Maybe he is still trying to find his confidence from that range?
“I do concede when it’s blatantly obvious and he’s spaced out, for instance, we’re posting Joel or Al Horford as an example, and Jo ends up down in that low zone, we can’t have four people on the perimeter,” said Brown. “So there are times where he could grab a corner, sometimes no, sometimes he can be behind a backboard and playing in that dunker spot as I call it, but it’s old news to me, to be truthful. I feel like his head is in a good place to shoot it and produce, but I don’t see it as trepidation or lack of confidence. I don’t see it like that.”
One thing is for certain, the Sixers will need Simmons to figure out a way to unlock his perimeter game. If that can happen on a full-time basis, then the Sixers are a much more dangerous team. [lawrence-related id=36077,36070,36055]