The quality of my life is significantly improved if I get to make a Ben Simmons highlight video but it doesn’t have to contain his assists. It just frees up so much time for me to do other things if Simmons, instead of getting eight or ten or twelve assists, gets a paltry amount like four. I know people like to watch Simmons for his passing, and that if I was smart or committed I would show the four assists, but I am neither smart nor committed, so this video is all about scoring.
Those mini-jumpers from fourteen feet out have officially become a part of Simmons’ repertoire. However, I wonder what would happen if he caught the ball wide open at around twenty feet out and tried to shoot it. Would it go in? Would it even be close? What would such a shot look like? How wide open would he have to be to try it? Would all five defenders have to be standing motionless on the baseline for him to attempt that shot? The gameplan for the 76ers’ next game (since they apparently can’t win a game anyway) should be to play McConnell and Simmons together, and try to set up at least five open midrange looks for Simmons where all he has to do is catch the ball and shoot it.