Sorry. Don't judge him by how he starts the season (good or bad). Wait until teams get a read on him and adjust to his strengths.
What I think about him is that he has all the right tools to be a great player in the NBA. Like other have mentioned, will he have the drive/passion to become better or will he just casually go about his NBA career.
I don't know what he pans out to be..a lot will come down to how his offensive game develops, but people in here saying his ceiling is a fringe all star player are f'n stupid. He has hall of fame potential. His instincts on the court with his ability to run the floor and make plays at 6'10(!) is really only comparable to Lebron. I've seen some draymond green comps but Green is what 6'6-7? If he develops a dependable jumpshot he will be a top 5 player in the league.
Magic was a terrible shooter for the bulk of his career. It wasn't until the last couple years that he finally put up the 3 at an acceptable percentage but even then he lacked consistency. He had basically zero range outside of 5 feet. But he was smart enough to know it and played to his strengths. Interesting comment though about Magic's ability to dribble through defenders in transition. He was like water in that regard. In my opinion the most devastating offensive transition force ever to lace them up. Haven't seen Simmons enough in transition to know if he has that ability. I have seen enough of him to know he's going to be a superstar. This is an ultra smart kid who already knows how to suck up the space when the defensive sags off him trying to force him to shoot it. He sucks up the space and collapsed the defense anyways. That is smart, smart, smart and it is proof that his lack of a jumper right now is not going to hurt him. He doesn't need the jumper because he is a devastating playmaker. He is looking to distribute the ball. Give him space and he'll suck it up and now the defense is defending a 6'10" stud 15 feet from the rim where one step gets him to the lip and he's a stunningly skilled passer/creator both inside and outside. This kid is going to be sensational. Because his strength of skills (playmaking/passing) is WAY stronger than his lack of skill (shooting). He's so devastating with his ball distribution that it doesn't matter if the defense slags off. Other examples of guys with elite skills that overcome their lack of skill in a particular area: Magic - Like Simmons could not shoot. Probably a worse shooter for the bulk of his career than Simmons is now. Shaq - just a terrible free throw shooter. But the rest of his game so devastating it didn't matter. Steve Nash - an awful defender. Jose Calderon level defensively. Just terrible. But such an offensive force with his playmaking and shooting that his D didn't matter. Bill Russell - had zero offensive game. Was a garbage man on offense. But a devastating defender and maybe the first player analytic ever. Smart enough to understand how to force the opponent into low efficiency offensive possessions over and over and QB his defense to championship after championship. A ruthless winner. Dwyane Wade - a terrible shooter from everywhere except layups/dunks. But so good at penetration and finishing it doesn't matter. I could name several others but will refrain. Needless to say Simmons is an elite passer. His lack of a jumper will not cause him to miss greatness. He's too good at other things.
Don't try to bring down Magic, just because you want to compare Simmons to him. That's a weak debating tactic that will fail on people who grew up watching Magic since his NCAA days. Was he a great shooter?...no. But he was able to get open 2pt shots and drain them. He had an ugly shot. But, he could score nearly at will when needed. We are talking about a different era when no one shot 3s. So, saying he didn't shoot 3s until the end of his career is meaningless. The guy could score when needed. I guarantee you that if the NBA really favored 3s back then, Magic's set shot motion, that he used very well in mid-range, gets easily extended to the 3pt line. Dude could drain open midrange shots. Don't tell me he couldn't, because ... he could.
I'd say it's a good sign to do well in the summer league, because if you are not doing well, then you are not aggressive enough. So good for him. But more work to do.
I think this is spot on here. He's coming into the league with an elite skill already(court vision) - few players enter the league that way and when they do they tend to be elite at athleticism and not necessarily something as advanced as being able to read both the offense and defense at once and make intelligent plays based on that. He may need some adjusting to the NBA speed but that will come to him in time because he is already fast enough - will just need to adjust to making those decisions at a quicker pace than he has had to playing with lesser players. ...Philly would be wise to mold a system to take advantage of Simmons strengths(and I'm not sure they are wise). You gotta put him in the Draymond Green role - surround him with lots of cuts and movement and let him pick defenses apart. They will do him a disservice if they see his skill set and think they can isolate him and let him create for others. He won't be bad at that, but I don't think his offensive game is versatile enough with that jumper to make him successful in that role early on.
Once again, Magic was a terribly shooter for most of his career. He couldn't drain shots from anywhere. He could finish. But he couldn't shoot.
"Great" might be an overstatement, but a consistent lock for All-Star, sure. I thought this before and after summer league.
I don't make conclusions from SL games. There is barely any D played and there is no organised O and D. And zero scouting. The question for Simmons is how he will do when all the teams have scouted him and clog up the paint so he won't be able to drive. Another question is his defence. But I see Philly got Bayless who has extensive training playing off the ball. So that's good it will help Simmons.
Where is the too early to say option? With just a few minutes of summer league he looked pretty promising but its too early to say how well he will do once he starts facing the big boys.
I see a lot of similarities and mannerisms to Lebron here. I am very happy for the Sixers; they got a bright kid [youtube]0A-UBO2d51o[/youtube]
according to OP opinions on the future carreer of a prospect should be formed in the first games u watch without real nba level competition. Otherwise you aren't bball savvant enough to compare to him.
I've watched enough basketball to spot greatness. This kid has it. He's a superstar. Too bad you can't figure it out.
His passing obviously looks special. Beyond that, it's hard to say. His finishing at the hoop wasn't very good in those highlight packages, his drives still seem awkward. He can't shoot yet (and it's not a given he'll ever shoot well from the perimeter). Court vision and passing will take you far, but he needs some other offensive abilities to be truly disruptive.
So? This is a different era of basketball. The game today bears little resemblance to the way it did in Magic's era. Team defenses are more sophisticated and have a better understanding of high and low value shot attempts and structure defenses around those areas. Help schemes are more sophisticated, etc. It's just apples and oranges. Rondo(great passer, decent finisher, horrible shooter, better defender than Magic) would still be a somewhat relevant player if he played in Magic's era but in this one? He's a dinosaur.
...and once again - I was agreeing with a post that Simmons has a chance at being truly great. Not sure why you thought I said he wouldn't be good.
