The Philadelphia 76ers were down two starters at home against one of the better teams in the league in the Los Angeles Lakers and it had a loss written all over it. However, it’s not safe to assume things, especially with this team.
The Sixers knocked off the Lakers 108-91 despite committing 23 turnovers as a team and they started Shake Milton and Matisse Thybulle against LeBron James and Anthony Davis. They earned such an impressive win thanks to Ben Simmons.
Simmons had 28 points, 10 rebounds, eight assists, and four steals as he led Philadelphia to the win on both ends of the floor.
“He was so, so good,” said coach Brett Brown. “Defensively, you look at the disturbance that Matisse and Ben caused, I think they had nine cumulative turnovers? He was really special tonight on a very talented court.”
Philadelphia improved to 21-2 at home on the season and the team as a whole really followed Simmons’ lead. The All-Star point guard was 12-for-15 on the floor and he went to the foul line six times. He did it in a very aggressive way on both ends of the floor, but the offensive game was something that was outstanding in this one.
“The offensive end,” said a wide-eyed Al Horford. “He made an impact on both ends, but the offensive end, his will, his ability to get to the basket, getting other people involved, it was just a great game. I was out there at times just watching him just figuring things out whether it was laying it up, making the pass. It’s amazing and he’s coming down the lane and it’s like ‘good luck’.”
Al Horford gives his thoughts on Ben Simmons offensively tonight #Sixers pic.twitter.com/sLjoz8swsL
— Ky Carlin (@Ky_Carlin) January 26, 2020
Even young Shake Milton, who earned the start in place of Josh Richardson, had a lot of praise for Simmons.
“He’s an easy guy to play with,” said Milton. “He’s very unselfish, he gets to the rim with ease, and he’s always looking to pass so any time you’re able to play with somebody like that, it makes your job a lot easier.”
This is the type of game that the Sixers really need from Simmons moving forward and they will need it against everybody. Not just against teams like the Lakers, it has to be against the bottom teams as well. Simmons is the type of player who’s capable of these types of games on a more consistent basis.
They face the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday. That’s a game where they should win by double-digits, but they’ve been so up-and-down all season. Tuesday will be telling for both Simmons and the team as a whole. [lawrence-related id=24216,24209,24202]