Yeah, I've thought that because of all of the "true centers" they drafted that the Sixers have misused Simmons from day one. I think being on a team with Dame where he's clearly not the point guard and has a Giannis type of role will get Giannis type of numbers out of him. The guy is the second freakiest athletic big man in the game and the gap isn't that big, plus he handles and passes the ball better. According to reports out of practice he shoots the ball better than Giannis too but that doesn't need to be pushed right away for him to have a giant impact on this team.
Yes, he clearly did. But that's pretty serious: a fair number of players never come BACK from the yips. Remember Nick Anderson?
While I love the potential of Simmons in a different system, Giannis is built differently, especially mentally. He works out like a monster and isn't afraid of failing on TV. The dude airballs consecutive FTs and goes right back to the rim to shoot two more the next possession. Simmons is mentally far weaker and cares way too much about how he looks. I don't think the two are comparable for that reason alone. But I fully agree that he is horribly miscast as a full time PG and that he would flourish as a roll guy/ finisher with Dame. Can't think of a more synergistic pairing for both Dame/Ben than each other, tbh.
Gobert also isn’t a playmaker who you can’t have handling the ball late in games because of fouls. He doesn’t seem to have mental issues about shooting from the rim. He scores the same amount, rebounds more, blocks more, led league in FG%. Bigs always get a pass for not being primary scorers in 2021. Ben is “big” but he’s essentially point forward who handles the ball and creates for others. He’s good at it but he and Rudy will be judged differently
I see this as a positive. Having a 6'10 forward with elite shot creation ability and can defend at the point of attack seems like a terrific skillset to add next to Dame.
if he can consistently get to 70%, this would not be a problem. That's on him to work on it, but the risk (trading CJ) here is minimal compared to the potential reward.
The best player available for the Sixers is CJ, with Dame and Beal off the board. Halliburton is cool and even has some upside but CJ is the perimeter scorer and ball handler they need to win now. So, I think they get CJ for Simmons and both teams are better because of it.
It's going to be GS, and I'm going to be pissed as hell. The fit with Draymond is iffy and I don't see them trading Green for Simmons. I also predict that we'll see reports of Neil unwilling to give up CJ that will drive me up a wall. GS has their three young guys in Kuminga/Moody/Wiseman who are horribly miscast on a team that is ready to win now. All their stars have already been clamoring to trade those guys for win-now players and I think the team will get it done.
I agree that both teams win in this. Redemption is a sweet thing, and Simmons could really rewrite his future along side Dame. CJ, IMO, would flourish in Philly. As the main distributor, and, go to in the clutch shooter, he'd have a chance to build his brand & become an All Star in the East.
I think Philly wants a win now guy... so I just don't see GS having the package to pull off the deal. They can't do better than CJ and I have to believe that CJ is available for a freak like Simmons.
I'm thinking from the context of Philly acquiring young assets in hopes of a potential Dame/Beal trade later. Morey seems adamant in pursuing Lillard (foolishly) and this situation with Ben is becoming untenable, so he will flip him for equal value assets even if they aren't win-now pieces.
That's fair enough, I guess. I just think they'll take a win now piece because they had the best record in the East last season. So if they get better now maybe they get a chip.
I'm not sure Morey has time to wait. Embiid's knee is a serious question mark. He had luck on his side last year with 2 situations that looked like ACL tears, and ended up being strains. He's almost too big for the type of moves he likes to do. His body just doesn't seem to be able to take the stress.
It shouldn't. Consider this: Kanter was a low paid reserve who had to step in and start for a good chunk of the season. He gave us solid production and helped the team make the play-offs. He then had a bad series against Denver and now many fans are happy we replaced him with (snicker) Zeller. It seems reasonable that fans would have higher expectations for Simmons than for Kanter! Of course, the real issue is that Simmons can't deal with those high expectations.
How many years did Philly intentionally tank for this roster? 7 years? They need Embiid to stay healthy and get something for Simmons.
