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Even Ben Simmons’ harshest critics can’t deny his talent, but as we’ve seen before, talent alone doesn’t make for an ideal fit.
We saw that play out spectacularly with Simmons and his old team, the Philadelphia 76ers.
His fit with the Sixers by all accounts had run its course. Now with a new team, the 25-year-old will try to do what he couldn’t in Philly: fit in while providing whatever is necessary to win an NBA title.
He joins a Brooklyn Nets team that began the season in a title-or-bust mentality. Despite losses in 11 of their last 12 games, that mindset hasn’t changed.
The Nets are led by a pair of perennial All-Stars in Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, both of whom have won titles with other teams. Durant and Irving’s focus in coming to Brooklyn was to add another championship to their already impressive Hall of Fame-worthy legacies, and they expect their next-best teammate, Simmons, to do his part in making that happen.
That means not just showing up occasionally in the fourth quarter but actually making plays down the stretch. Layups, open jumpers, defensive stops—anything needed to secure wins.
Bleacher Report spoke off the record with executives and scouts around the league to figure out what Simmons can expect in Brooklyn and what the Nets can expect from him.
1. Does the Pressure Increase for Simmons?
“You would think with KD and Kyrie, there’s less pressure on him,” a league executive said. “But the truth is, there’s actually more pressure because all that franchise cares about is winning a title. And we all know, winning is a lot harder to do in this league than playing well. How is he going to handle that pressure to win? Because it’s a lot greater now than it was in Philly.”
But when it comes to how well Simmons fits with the Nets, playing well won’t be enough.
While there is a win-now mentality with Brooklyn, the club didn’t make this deal for short-term success.
Simmons’ contract calls for him to make $33 million this season, with another $113.7 million owed to him over the next three seasons.
With that investment comes more pressure to perform, which has the potential to only add to the mental health challenges he is working through.
2. Will He Be a Major Upgrade Defensively?
Matt York/Associated Press
Brooklyn will get defensive relief at the perfect time—rock bottom. The Nets’ defensive rating this season (111.0) ranks 19th in the NBA. During their last 10 games, their defensive rating of 117.3 ranks 26th in the league.
Even with the long All-Star layoff, the Nets know at a minimum their defense will be significantly better with Simmons.
The 2018 Rookie of the Year has been a member of the NBA’s All-Defensive first team the last two seasons. At 6’11”, he has the size to defend all five positions, which is extremely valuable in a league where every team runs a ton of pick-and-rolls.
“What you have to love about Ben’s defense is that he’s elite on and off the ball,” a Western Conference scout said. “He’s one of the few guys in this league who can guard all five positions effectively.”
3. Will He Have a Clearly Defined Role?
While in Philly, Simmons’ game seemed as though it had no limits. He was a basketball unicorn, with his size, strength and court vision establishing him as one of the best in the NBA.
That success was both a blessing and a burden to Simmons and the Sixers. Like all teams striving toward greatness, one of the keys to success is having an orderly leadership process.
But for years, far too often it wasn’t clear whether Simmons or Embiid was leading the team.
And as much as both players repeatedly told the media that it did not matter in those early days, it absolutely did.
“It’s unfortunate that I guess having his own team and being a star was more important,” said Embiid, who still won’t even say Simmons’ name publicly.
Here’s the thing: Brooklyn is not Simmons’ team. He’s further down the pecking order now than he was in Philly.
But that’s not a negative when you consider the health benefits for him in not having the weight of a franchise on his shoulders.
Because of that, league executives believe the Nets will try to utilize Simmons in different ways than what we saw in Philadelphia, including more as a “smallish-ball” power forward or center.
“He gives them some lineup options that you can see, could cause some serious lineup problems for teams,” an Eastern Conference scout said. “Forcing other teams to adjust…I can see that happening a lot.”
4. Will He Be a Better Fit Than Harden?
Chris Szagola/Associated Press
Because of injuries, illnesses and Kyrie Irving’s refusal to be vaccinated against COVID-19, we’ll never know how good Brooklyn’s Big Three could have been.
Most executives we spoke with agree that Harden is a better player than Simmons, but they all believe Simmons is a better fit for Brooklyn.
“Ben has next-level court vision,” an Eastern Conference executive said. “Putting him on the floor with two of the best scorers in the game…Brooklyn’s offense is going to be a problem for a lot of teams, more than they are now, when healthy of course.”
Durant and Irving are at their best when they have the ball. Ditto for Harden, which only added time to figure out how to play well with one another.
That’s not going to be an issue with Simmons. He’s one of the NBA’s best passers and will surely look to do more of that in Brooklyn.
In addition to Durant and Irving, Simmons will also be looking to get the ball into the hands of Seth Curry and Patty Mills, who are having career seasons scoring the ball.
Both will be targets for Simmons, especially in transition.
Durant and head coach Steve Nash have made no secret about wanting the Nets to play with more pace, something that is a strength of Simmons’ game.
He has played with a pace of at least 101.09 in each of his four seasons. The Charlotte Hornets are the league’s leaders in pace this season at 101.33.
5. Will He Help or Hurt in the Clutch?
For this new dynamic to work out for Simmons, his comfort zone will be tested at some point. Brooklyn will need him to score in ways that don’t involve layups or dunks. And he’ll have to do it in late-game situations, which poses a bit of a conundrum for the Nets.
There’s little doubt they want Simmons on the floor in the game’s closing moments. But the struggles in late-game situations we saw in Philadelphia, along with his untrustworthy free-throw shooting (career 59.7 percent), create a level of concern.
“That’s going to be where Steve Nash and his staff are really going to have their hands full,” the Eastern Conference scout said. “You need his defense down the stretch, obviously. But how much do you keep the ball in his hands? And do you have to play the sub-in, sub-out game?”
Brooklyn doesn’t have to worry about that with Durant and Irving, who have proved their worth as clutch players in the past.
This season, Durant is ranked fifth in the NBA in points scored (3.9) during clutch situations. Irving, who has appeared in just seven “clutch” games this season, ranks 50th with 2.1 points per game. Last season, he ranked eighth in clutch points (3.3) among those who appeared in at least as many clutch games (29) as he did.
They have the potential to provide the kind of lesson that Simmons will have no choice but to be exposed to; the kind of lesson that has career-defining potential for a player who has a fresh start on a still-promising career.
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