Even if the Sixers use their top pick on an elite guard, Ben Simmons will still be given an opportunity to show what he can do at point guard, Keith Pompey of Philly.com writes. After suffering a Jones fracture in his right foot, Simmons was ruled out for the duration of 2016/17. According to coach Brett Brown, the team will “immediately” give Simmons minutes at the point next season.
“I feel that the team has to try that immediately,” Brown said. “In my eyes, we are going to try that. I feel that it’s something that I doubt you say, ‘That didn’t work,’ and you just move on quickly. There has to be a body of work that you judge him on.”
More from Philly…
- For all of the impact Joel Embiid has had in his rookie season, the Sixers need to figure out if he can stay healthy for a full season, Flan Blinebury of NBA.com writes. As Blinebury details, Embiid has suffered a stress fracture in his back, a broken bone in his right foot, as well as a bone bruise and meniscus tear in his left knee within the last four years. Embiid was a force to be reckoned with in 2016/17, averaging 20.2 points with 2.5 blocks over 31 games. In summary, Blinebury offers the Sixers an ultimatum: “Before the end of next season, it will be time to decide if Embiid is a foundation to build upon or or just brilliantly brittle.”
- Shawn Long, who has recently signed a 10-day contract with the Sixers, initially thought he was being brought in for a workout. According to Jessica Camerato of CSN Philly, Long was surprised to find out he’d been called up from the Delaware 87ers. “It still hasn’t settled in yet,” Long said. “Right now [I am] a five, a stretch five. I’m still working on my shot, trying to be more consistent on the pro level. Rebounding the ball hard, that’s something I really want to focus in on … playing hard and bringing that toughness to the game.”
- Long, who has yet to make his NBA debut, averaged 20.2 points with 11.2 rebounds over 39 games in Delaware. Long’s presence is much-needed in Philly’s frontcourt, as Jahlil Okafor continues to battle right knee soreness. “I think I’ve adjusted to the physicality of the pro game. That’s something that was tough for me at first,” Long added. “It’s a big opportunity for me and I’m looking to capitalize on it.”
uhmm……has anyone heard of Anthony Davis? Is he not brittle yet still elite? Is he not injury prone like Embiid? DO you hear the Pelicans talking about moving on from him? No I don’t think so. Just another case of 76ers mis-management and ineptitude. Oh and of course he’s a f*cking PG where else would you play a guy who’s 6’10” with a handle and no jumpshot? Ever see Magic Johnson at age 21?
The difference between Davis and Embiid is that Embiid has only played 31 games in THREE seasons. Davis has played at least 60 games every year (not including this year). To put it simply, Embiid will have missed more games in three seasons than Davis has in five seasons.
Kris clearly seems hurt for some reason and obviously does not trust the process.
To be fair… Davis has only missed 68 games, spread over 4 seasons (not including this year). Embiid has missed 164 not including this year in 2 season.
We’re teetering on Greg Oden status here.
Whether Simmons is the defacto PG or not, he will have the ball go through him regardless. Like he’ll be high on this list:
link to stats.nba.com!?sort=TIME_OF_POSS&dir=1&Season=2016-17&SeasonType=Regular%20Season&PlayerPosition=F
Philadelphia has the worst luck with early draft picks getting injerd
Well part of it is self-inflicted. They drafted Noel who was already hurt because of an ACL tear. Embiid also had foot surgery just days before the draft. So while they have had bad luck, they haven’t done anything (in terms of who they are drafting) to really prevent it.
The elite guard we’re talking about at 5 is Malik Monk. They won’t have an opportunity to get Fultz, Ball, or even Smith. Grabbing a SG isn’t going to effect the Simmons PG experiment.
PG Simmons – Bayless
SG Monk – Henderson
SF Covington/TLC – Anderson
PF Saric – Simmons
C Embiid – Okafor – Holmes
Doesn’t look bad.
Tj McConnell will be the backup pg in this scenario. He really has come a long way and is a respectable in only his second year He is a playmaker and could thrive in the second unit without Simmons and monk who both need the ball
What do you think happens with Bayless then? Traded? He’s making 9 M for the next 2 seasons. Unless they trade Henderson who is on a 1 year deal next year and use Bayless in the SG spot along side McConnell.
They’d probably try to just stash Bayless on their roster to reach the cap floor. He’ll probably end up asking for minutes/get traded so at that point they’ll trade Bayless. Or buy him out. Doesn’t make sense to play Bayless over McConnell (or let McConnell go in some way) just because Bayless is making more money.
I agree, doesnt make sense to choose Bayless over McConnell. McConnell is a great back-up ball-handler for any team. Bayless hasnt seen the floor consistently in a while, no sense in having a more expensive/older player over the cheaper/more valuable one.
Simmons isnt going to be playing the pure PG role, he will more likely be a point-forward.
In your scenario:
G: McConnell/Bayless
G: Monk/Henderson
F: Covington/Anderson/TLC
F: Simmons/Saric
C: Embiid/Okafor/Holmes
76ers need Okafor back ASAP so he can rebuild his value. Holmes looks like a good energy/efficient back-up for Embiid. Maybe they keep him as insurance though, never know with Embiids injury history
Jo Jo is Zydrunas Ilgauskus
Maybe Jah – he’s pretty heavy footed. Jo Jo could be Hakeem w/a consistent 3pter.