It’s been a career-long theme for Philadelphia 76ers star Ben Simmons. The lack of a mid-range game and the unwillingness to take three-pointers.
How bad has it got? People were absolutely shocked when the point-forward nailed his first career three-pointer earlier in the season. Since then, Simmons has made 1-of-4 attempts.
In talking about his team’s lack of a perimeter game, Sixers head coach Brett Brown seemingly called out Simmons.
The Q&A with the media quickly turned to Simmons’ unwillingness to shoot his shot from beyond the arc. Brown’s response was perfect. “Evidently, I have failed, and it’s something we are all mindful of,” Brown said when discussing Simmons not heeding his advice about taking more threes.
Despite Philadelphia’s decent 23-14 record, the team needs to find it from distance if it is going to be considered a legit NBA title contender. The rankings from three-point range are just horrible.
- Three-pointers made: 19th
- Three-pointers attempted: 22nd
- Three-point percentage: 14th
Brown’s point about taking more threes makes sense in that the Sixers rank in the top half of the NBA in percentage from beyond the arc.
The always thoughtful head coach also noted that playing bully ball in today’s Association likely isn’t going to lead to sustained success. The game has changed. This is not the early 1990s.
Whether this leads to a change of philosophy from Mr. Simmons remains to be seen.