One thing Philadelphia 76ers fans have enjoyed most since the James Harden-Ben Simmons blockbuster trade with the Brooklyn Nets went down has been roasting Simmons' notorious lack of a jump shot.

Sure, Sixers fans have always complained about the issue in the past. But it's been especially fun for them to listen to Nets GM Sean Marks or head coach Steve Nash use some of the same talking points Sixers' coaches have used in the past to support a player who is beyond reluctant to shoot from outside the paint and has struggled from the free throw line.

Nets fans will just have to get used to their new star player being flamed by his former fanbase. But this time, the flaming comes from a local Philly legend, Herb Magee.

The 2011 Hall of Fame inductee is synonymous with Thomas Jefferson University and known as a “shot doctor.” Only Duke's Mike Krzyzewski has more wins as a men's head coach at the collegiate level than Magee. He's a local hoops god, known for his shooting prowess. He was drafted by the Boston Celtics once upon a time but opted for coaching instead.

Magee has been consulted by Philadelphia media in the past for insight on Simmons' infamous struggles from the line. But he only recently revealed the true reason he never worked with Simmons one-on-one, also casting doubt on the three-time All-Star's work ethic.

After coaching his last game for Jefferson, putting a stamp on a career that began in 1967, totaling 1,123 wins, Magee was asked if he might work with Simmons.

“I’ll get pulled aside, ‘Coach, can I ask you a question?’ I said sure. ‘When are you going to work with Ben Simmons?’ I said, ‘That’s not going to happen.' I said the same answer all the time. Brett Brown, who I became friends with, he asked me to do it one day and I said, ‘I will, but you’ve got to ask Ben Simmons.’ And he never got back to me. So obviously Ben is the type of guy who doesn’t really want to improve.”

The truth is, Nets fans really do have a lot to look forward to these days.  And some fans got excited on Wednesday, when Simmons was spotted working on his form with Kyle Korver, a Nets assistant and all-time great shooter, at practice.

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But Sixers fans have been down this road before and will understandably roll their eyes at an update like this. They know Simmons has been reluctant to seek help from top shooting coaches in the past. He reportedly clashed with his former team years ago over who he would work with, preferring to practice with his brother rather than team shooting coach John Townsend.

The long and the short of it all is this: Simmons isn't going to be a plus shooter this regular season. But the Nets will absolutely need him to at least knock down enough of his free throws to avoid incentivizing opponents to intentionally foul him in crunch time.

It will be intriguing to see if Simmons can get back to being a 60 percent free throw shooter or if there will be some carryover from his recent struggles at the line. He shot an abysmal 25-of-73 from the stripe in the playoffs last season. Worrying about being fouled might have contributed to why he was famously not aggressive in key moments vs. the Atlanta Hawks during the playoffs last year.

Simmons doesn't need to work with Herb Magee or John Townsend. But he will eventually (next summer) need to alter his mechanics a bit if he wants to improve significantly as a shooter. His new teammate, Blake Griffin, made major strides in that department, working with famous shot doctor Bob Thate, the same coach who once helped Nets legend Jason Kidd with his form.

But maybe Korver can at least help Simmons knock down 6-of-10 from the line the rest of this season. Simmons needs to tuck his shooting elbow in a bit, follow through and freeze.

By summer, if Simmons wanted to, he could prove Magee and all of his haters wrong by further streamlining his release. Can you imagine the look on Sixers' fans face  if Simmons got to a point he could comfortably drain 3-of-4 from the line? If he got comfortable enough there, he would be seeking out contact instead of avoiding it in crucial moments.

A defense that already has to worry about stopping Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, suddenly having to account for Simmons' newfound aggression? That would be overkill.

Sean Marks Steve Nash and the Nets need a short-term and long-term plan with Ben Simmons. Draining 60 percent of his free throws this season is step one. Adjusting his mechanics a bit next summer is step two. Then proving haters wrong could just be a side benefit to the real goal of winning some rings.