The Brooklyn Nets will try to snatch the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference away from the Philadelphia 76ers, as the two teams are both vying for the best record in the conference. While Kevin Durant, James Harden, and the absent Kyrie Irving will run and gun, the 76ers can afford to slow it down and grind out victories thanks to Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid.
The Nets, fresh off a demolition of the Minnesota Timberwolves, will take on the 76ers, but Durant will likely have to watch his minutes, Irving is still on leave due to personal reasons, and Harden is unlikely to play due to an injury.
Even with those question marks, Brooklyn’s depth should make Simmons and the 76ers perfectly aware of the fact they could be in for a dogfight in this game. At least, they should’ve made Simmons aware, as the former No. 1 overall pick is remaining strangely cool when asked about the Nets.
Simmons did acknowledge the talent the Nets have at their disposal, but he parroted the same tropes everyone else is using to harsh Brooklyn’s buzz, playing the hits by mocking the alleged lack of defense and questioning how the Nets will distribute shots between their stars.
Ben Simmons: "Obviously, Brooklyn has a lot of talent but there's only one ball and you gotta play defense, too."
— Jackson Frank (@jackfrank_jjf) April 13, 2021
This sounds like a comment made BEFORE Harden started playing with the Nets.
The Brooklyn Nets are proving Ben Simmons wrong everyday.
Since their loss against the Detroit Pistons in February, the Nets have been allowing under 110 points per game, which would be one of the best marks in the league if extrapolated out to a full season. They might not have the best interior defense in the world, but the unit as a collective is playing well.
Simmons appears to think that the fact there is only one ball will limit Brooklyn’s effectiveness. It seems like he missed out on the fact that Harden is leading the league in assists per game and both Irving and Durant have proven to be exceptional off-ball offensive players. Those seem like pretty important caveats.
The Nets have the second-highest scoring offense in the league, and that is with their collection of star power only playing a handful of games together. Brooklyn has given the league no indication that they will slow down when all three are back in the starting lineup, proving the inaccuracy of Simmons’ comments.
The Nets are by no means a perfect team, as the backup Lakers proved this week. However, Simmons bringing back the old “there’s only one ball” takes is doing a disservice to the exceptional offense the Nets have crafted over the last few months. Hopefully, whatever members of the superstar trio show up can give Simmons an education in that regard.
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