Speaking to reporters Wednesday in NY, inadvertently draining any remaining sliver of drama, Simmons referred to the 76ers as “we”. Dunn has concerns about his efficiency after an 18.8 turnover percentage, and he can find himself out of control at times, but his two-way potential as a scoring floor general would seem to be well-worth the Sixers dealing one of its far too many big men.
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Simmons is expected to be the No.1 pick in the NBA Draft on Friday morning joining the Philadelphia 76ers as they look to return to prominence after not having been in the play-offs since the 2011-12 season.
He has been considered the choice for months, and there are plenty of reasons why.
With the traditional big man becoming more and more rare in an National Basketball Association without normal positions, the All-ACC performer could make a big splash early in his career if he can be an efficient jump shooter at the next level.
The LSU freshman went through drills two days before the draft in NY.
“But, depending on where he goes I still get a chance to play him”.
“I think he is a great young talent”.
He averaged 19.2 points, 11.8 rebounds and 4.8 assists, the only SEC player ever to finish in the top five in all three categories. Simmons is a power forward, assuming they indeed draft him, and they also have young center-forwards Nerlens Noel and Joel Embiid. “You’re always hoping for the best, for sure, and it’s a lot of excitement, but you need to be realistic and wait for the moment”. “You can’t say certain things otherwise they might not hear you, but as soon as I go back home it switches”, he said. But, as the playoff injury to Bradley reminded us last season, the Celtics could benefit from additional depth at the guard spot.
Melbourne guard Emmanuel Malou, who has been playing at a U.S. junior college and was expected to join division one side Iowa State, has opted to stay in the draft and miss college but he appears an outside chance to be picked.
Meanwhile, NBA talent evaluators have complimented Ingram’s defense, outside shooting and ability to play multiple positions after he won ACC’s Freshman of the Year award during his lone season at Duke.
When his first clash with Simmons comes up, Exum said he would go straight at his fellow Victorian.
Simmons has already signed an endorsement deal with Nike and will be in an upcoming Showtime documentary called “ONE & DONE” that’ll air in October.
Draft night is what the Sixers (10-72) have built – or rather, destroyed – for over the last three seasons.
Simmons worked out for the Sixers on Tuesday morning, marking his only individual workout.
Simmons’ good mate and fellow Australian NBA guard Dante Exum has also told Simmons to prepare for a test once he reaches the NBA.
“It’s surreal”, said Simmons during Wednesday afternoon’s predraft media availability in midtown Manhattan. LeBron’s been like a big brother to me, watching me play and giving me pointers on just little things. The small forward out of Duke is expected to be selected by the Lakers with the second pick in the draft Thursday.
The air of mystery surrounding the Celtics’ draft night intentions has a supreme impact with every other team that follows. “He’s incredibly productive. They just don’t make guys like that very often that have that kind of size and skill level”. “He’s not flawless, he doesn’t shoot it the way you would hope he would”. Ingram doesn’t have the same tools as Simmons, but he could very easily end up having a much better National Basketball Association career.
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When the jumper gets better and eventually so do the 76ers, there won’t be any questions left to ask.
