The NBA Draft is over a month away, but the Philadelphia 76ers already have a good idea about who they want with the first overall selection. According to Kevin Ding of Bleacher Report, the Sixers are “leaning heavily” toward taking LSU forward Ben Simmons.
The Australia native did a bit of everything in his only season in college, scoring 19.2 points per game to go along with 11.8 rebounds, 4.8 assists, and 2.0 steals on his way to second-team All-America honors. Despite his huge season, LSU did not make the NCAA tournament.
Some have compared his upside to LeBron James, and while that may be generous, there's no denying the potential for Simmons is sky high. For a 6-foot-10 player, he can handle the ball extremely well and glide to the rim with ease, in addition to his exceptional rebounding and passing skills.
The Sixers still plan to scout Duke forward Brandon Ingram heavily, but are enticed more by Simmons' upside, according to the report.
At one point, there was no debate about Simmons' status as the No. 1 pick, but questions about his attitude and his outside shot have allowed Ingram to creep into the discussion for the selection However, the debate between the two seems to be short-lived. If the Sixers opt to go with Simmons, Ingram will be a slam dunk pick for the Los Angeles Lakers at No. 2 (unless they trade it).
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