Brooklyn Nets: Ben Simmons wildly boasts despite Kyrie Irving cooking him
By Mike Luciano
The Brooklyn Nets, depleted thanks to the loss of LaMarcus Aldridge, fell to Ben Simmons and the Philadelphia 76ers in their most recent outing.
Kyrie Irving should be totally absolved of blame, however, as he nearly put up 40 points despite Kevin Durant, James Harden, and essentially Brooklyn’s entire backcourt rotation missing in this game.
Simmons, who is a Defensive Player of the Year candidate this season, tried his best, but the mesmerizing dribbles, solid shooting, and unmatched creative abilities of Irving were too much for him to handle. Even at 6-11, Simmons was letting Irving get to the hole for most of the evening.
That didn’t stop Simmons from boasting about his success to the press in the immediate aftermath, though.
Not only did Simmons claim that his DPOY movement won’t take a dive after his game against the Nets, but he actually thinks that he improved his chances in that contest despite numbers proving otherwise.
In an interview with GQ, Simmons claimed that in addition to advanced metrics proving he should be the DPOY, the fact that he guarded Irving when he was originally supposed to take on Durant shows that his versatility and quality are unequaled across all of basketball.
Ben Simmons: “I’m the Defensive Player of the Year. I was supposed to guard [Kevin Durant]... KD’s out today. The next person I’m guarding is Kyrie Irving. Like... who’s doing that?” (via GQ)
— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) April 16, 2021
When the writer brought up the fact that Irving toasted Simmons to the tune of 37 points on 59% shooting, Simmons shot back by saying that the 76ers won and his plus-minus was negative. Not only does that have no bearing on his ability to defend Irving, but Simmons himself was a -1 on the evening, proving that these comments are nothing more than hot air.
Brooklyn Nets: Kyrie Irving is better than Ben Simmons
It is admittedly hard to compare these two players face-to-face because they have such contrasting styles, but it’s also hard to justify Simmons as a clear winner in this debate. Simmons might be the better defender, but the Nets’ defensive turnaround over the last few months wouldn’t have happened if Irving were just dogging it on every play.
Simmons was absolutely demolished by Irving when the two teams matched up with each other. At the risk of sounding picky, if I’m voting for Defensive Player of the Year, I would prefer to see actual defense played against elite competition.
Simmons is a fantastic player, and he’s one of the most unique players in the league. However, this take is the result of what happens when opinions of Kyrie are formed solely based on preconceived notions about his defense and behavior in the locker room.
Simmons isn’t the DPOY, nor is he on Irving’s level as a player.
