Ben Simmons Not Off to a Great Start in Brooklyn
Ben Simmons is struggling. As if there isn’t enough to talk about the Brooklyn Nets, the team is now increasingly frustrated with the former first overall pick, according to a report from The Athletic Wednesday.
Sources close to the situation keyed in on both his availability and level of play this season as spots of contention. In just 10 games, four of which are off the bench, Simmons has averaged 5.8 points, 6.1 rebounds and 5.6 assists. The obvious issues are still there — his lack of just about any shooting, and his confidence issues that come as a result of that, are omnipresent.
However, the team as a whole is struggling. Currently with a 6-9 record, Brooklyn sits a game and a half out of the 10-seed play-in spot in the Eastern Conference. While they did show signs of life after switching coaches to Jacque Vaughn, it has since worn off.
The one thing people did like about Simmons was his defense. Despite that, his stopping ability has yet to translate to his new home. It was all on display last night as Brooklyn gave up a franchise-high 153 points last night to the Sacramento Kings. Simmons was somewhat of a bright spot though, scoring 11 points. But his All-Defense caliber of play was nowhere to be found as the Kings had their way in both the interior and exterior.
Running out of time
The Nets were expected to finally have a solid season this year. I even thought they would due to the fact that a fully healthy roster looked really good on paper. Shooting, bench scoring, and defense all seemed to be above league average.
Now 15 games in, the exact opposite has taken place. The defense gives up easy buckets. The shooting is hot-and-cold. And you never know what to really expect from the Brooklyn bench. Sadly, Simmons has been at the heart of it. He looks nothing like the All-Star he was in Philly as a starter, and can’t seem to get anything going off the bench.
With the big-three of him, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant, a lot of people expected them to at least be in the top-six of the Eastern Conference. Instead, much like the Lakers, a team with talent is underperforming considerably.
Brooklyn has got to figure it out quick. Both in terms of getting the best out of this season and finding ways to win. They’re in serious danger of looking like yet another failed superteam with a long and dark future ahead of them.
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