Ben Simmons shows off point forward skills in LSU debut

When Austin Peters and I put together the first version of our 2016 Big Board, both of us skipped on LSU freshman Ben Simmons when it came to discussions for the top spot. I put my push behind Kentucky’s Skal Labissiere and Austin backed Maccabi Tel Aviv’s Dragan Bender, both reasonable options. Simmons ended up at No. 3. However, after his performance in LSU’s opening night 81-70 victory over McNeese St., it’s clear that Simmons has the talent to push himself to the top of NBA draft boards come June.

Simmons finished with a double-double in the game, racking up 11 points on seven shots and grabbing 13 rebounds. It was something else that stood out, though. Players that are 6-10 usually find themselves banging in the paint in college basketball. They tend to be taller than the majority of their opponents and do their work down low. Simmons, on the other hand, thrives at making plays with the ball in his hand, particularly in transition.

Early on against the Cowboys, Simmons found himself with the ball after a defensive rebound. Rather than dish the ball off to his point guard to set up the offense, Simmons took off down the floor with his head up looking for teammates. He headed over mid-court, dribbling to his right and drawing the attention of two defenders along with him, before dropping off a smooth behind the back pass to teammate Tim Quarterman who finished a nice layup at the rim.

This play epitomizes the skills that make Simmons such a unique player. For a 6-10 guy, Simmons has incredible court vision and the necessary ball handling to make himself an effective point forward. Overall, Simmons tallied five assists in the contest, which equates to assisting on approximately 31 percent of the Tigers’ field goals when he was on the floor, according to KenPom.

Basketball tends to be defined by talents who do things we haven’t seen before. For example, LeBron James changed the way teams approach lineup construction because of his ability to facilitate at the forward spot. Simmons, as a 6-10 point forward, is aiming to do something similar at the college level and in the process position himself as an attractive option for NBA GMs.