Philadelphia 76ers: Should Ben Simmons be benched if he doesn’t shoot?
If Ben Simmons doesn’t shoot 3’s or even long-range jumpers, should he be punished by being benched? It’s a move that Brett Brown entertained.
Ben Simmons won the NBA’s Rookie of the Year award in 2018, has been named to the Eastern Conference all-star team in back-to-back years, and is considered one of the five best point guards in the NBA.
When he’s aggressive and engaged on both ends of the floor, he’s often considered one of the best players on the floor – no matter who the opponent may be. Nevertheless, despite averaging nearly a triple-double in each of his three seasons in the NBA, the narrative that has followed Simmons has been his inability to develop a consistent 3-point shot.
In the golden age of 3-point shooting, it’s understandable to not envy having a starting point guard that refuses to pull-up for a wide-open 20 footer, much less a 3-pointer. Plus, schematically, it doesn’t help spacing on the offensive end either.
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However, how far should the Philadelphia 76ers go in trying to get Simmons to develop his jumper? Or even attempt the occasion from time to time? In a recent report, it was discovered that Brett Brown entertained the idea of benching Simmons if he continued to attempt jumpers.
"[per ESPN]“I told Ben, ‘If you aren’t willing to shoot, then do I just bench you? Because I can do that,'” Brown says. “We could have gone that route or continue to coach him as it relates to spacing. We worked on the ability to use it as a choice to shoot the 3, catch and go, get in the paint, or find someone else.“This was all discussed. I opted to take this path. I think only down the road will we be able to truly assess if it was the right one. In the meantime, he’s a two-time All-Star, a kid that’s gone from a college 4 to an NBA point guard. His story is a pretty darn good one.”"
Thankfully, Brown decided against it but the fact that he even thought about the possibility of benching him is…quite interesting. But it brings up an interesting question that should be asked, would benching Simmons in favor of a point guard that can shoot 3’s a move that would lift the Sixers’ ceiling.
At least for one season, this core is not working. The combination of Simmons, Joel Embiid, Al Horford, Josh Richardson, and Tobias Harris left much to be desired. Currently as the sixth seed in the middle of a hiatus, the Sixers were one of the most disappointing teams in the NBA this season.
But here’s the thing as it pertains to Simmons that I believe needs to be factored in. If Simmons is not going to shoot 3’s, that’s perfectly fine. He just has to take advantage of his other strengths. And one of his biggest is his ability to drive the lane and penetrate with relative ease due to his size, speed, and strength.
The fact that he only attempts 11 shots per game doesn’t scream aggressive in that respect. That’s a relative low number. For reference, Simmons is tied for fourth on the team in shot attempts per game, sitting behind Embiid, Richardson, and Harris. You can also make the case that he should be averaging more than five free-throw attempts per game too.
Simmons should probably only be second to Embiid in shot attempts, but that’s difficult to do without a consistent jumper and without the aggressiveness to drive the lane whenever he has the ball in his hands.
Those two stats are likely where most of Brown’s frustration comes from – the lack of true aggression vs. the lack of a legit jump shot.
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Perhaps the real issue that the Sixers have with Ben Simmons is his inconsistent aggressiveness and not his lack of a developed 3-point jump shot. Simmons should not be benched, but he should be coached and groomed. Getting caught up in the 3-point happy league is easy. The Sixers need to be smart and not fall into the fallacy that you have to be a good 3-point shooter to be a great player in the NBA.