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The Los Angeles Clippers are using their week off to prepare for their first round playoff series against Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets. One of the things the Clippers will need, according to head coach Tyronn Lue, is an aggressive Ben Simmons.
Ben Simmons has only been with the Clippers for a few months, but has already made a positive impact on the rotation.
Tyronn Lue on Ben Simmons' role heading into Clippers-Nuggets series
The LA Clippers will take on the Denver Nuggets in Game 1 of their first round playoff series starting Saturday afternoon. Tyronn Lue and his club have practiced a few times this week, including some scrimmages on Wednesday morning.
The Clippers mainly focused on defense, according to Kawhi Leonard, Norman Powell, and Lue. With the second unit being a focal point for this Clippers team, however, Lue also noted that Ben Simmons and his aggressiveness will be important.
“Just be aggressive, look at the basket,” head coach Tyronn Lue said. “If teams are playing him for the pass, we know he can score the basketball around the rim, just be aggressive and look at the basket. And that's going to open up his passing. It's instinctive and he has great instincts passing the basketball. So just being aggressive, looking at the rim, attacking the basket, then teams may collapse and then you can make the pass or make the play.”
Me: “Do you have to remind Ben Simmons to look to score?”
Tyronn Lue: “Yeah, we did. We talked about it the last couple of days and today he was aggressive attacking the basket, playing with pace, getting to the rim, making the plays, finishing at the rim. We need him to be… pic.twitter.com/QQP8Rbo1tO
— Tomer Azarly (@TomerAzarly) April 16, 2025
In his first game with the Clippers against the Utah Jazz, Simmons put up 12 points, seven rebounds, six assists, and three steals in 27 minutes of play.
Simmons has played 18 games with the Clippers since being acquired on the buyout market around the All-Star break. In his 18 contests, Simmons has averaged 2.9 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 3.1 assists in 16.4 minutes per game.
During the Clippers' final game of the regular season against the Golden State Warriors, ESPN broadcaster Bob Myers mentioned the lack of scoring aggressiveness from Simmons. Myers noted that teams know he's not even looking to score the ball and looking to get his teammates involved instead.
Head coach Tyronn Lue agreed with the notion when asked about it Wednesday, saying that he needs his backup guard/center to be more aggressive to score the basketball.
“Yeah, we did. We talked about it the last couple of days and today he was aggressive attacking the basket, playing with pace, getting to the rim, making the plays, finishing at the rim. We need him to be aggressive. The pace is great, but also look at the rim to be a scoring threat.”
Tyronn Lue on the difference with Ben Simmons and Nicolas Batum at the 5:
“Ben's ability to push the basketball in transition, make plays, get people easy shots. With Nico, if he's at the 5, being able to stretch the floor. If Joker's gonna blitz or in the drop, he has to… pic.twitter.com/mVqtoBAD2I
— Tomer Azarly (@TomerAzarly) April 16, 2025
In his first four seasons in the NBA, all with the Philadelphia 76ers, Simmons averaged 15.9 points, 8.1 rebounds, 7.7 assists, and 1.7 steals while playing 33.9 minutes per game. Since departing from Philadelphia, neither the scoring nor the shot attempts have not been there for the 6-foot-10 Australian.
Since coming over to Los Angeles, Ben Simmons has been used primarily as the backup point guard for the Clippers offensively while acting as the backup center defensively. It's made for some unique lineups and rotations, but the skillset Simmons possesses allows Tyronn Lue to get a little creative with his lineups.
Game 1 between Kawhi Leonard, James Harden, and the LA Clippers and Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets is set to tip off this Saturday, April 19, at 12:30PM PST on ESPN. Both teams will have two days off after Games 1 and 2 as well as after Games 3 and 4 before a game every other day the rest of the series, if necessary.
