Multiple factors can be attributed to the Philadelphia 76ers' loss to the New York Knicks on Tuesday. But there is one glaring storyline from the matchup. It was the first time this season the Sixers looked like they missed Ben Simmons out on the floor.
Through their first three games, they did a good job filling the void he left. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for their latest meeting. It became apparent early on the Sixers could have benefited from having the services of the former number one overall pick.
The two areas of the game Simmons affects most are defense and facilitation. Both are areas the Sixers struggled in at times and wouldn't have happened to the degree it did if the three-time All-Star was on the floor.
Defense was the main area many people knew the Sixers were going to miss the 25-year-old. He finished second in Defensive Player of the Year voting last season and is arguably the most versatile player in the league on that end of the floor.
With his size and speed, Simmons can be a disruptor on the perimeter while Joel Embiid mans down the middle. This perimeter was greatly missed as the Knicks connected on a barrage of shots from beyond the arc. Tobias Harris did a good job slowing down Julius Randle, but the backcourt struggled to stop the bleeding as New York's guards continued to let it fly from three.
Now to the offensive end, Simmons' elite-level playmaking is something that could have been a difference-maker for the Sixers. The Sixers have gotten by with a ball-movement-heavy system that allows everyone to touch the ball and be a decision-maker, but the Knicks' defense was too much at times, and they struggled to generate good looks.
Credit to the Knicks, who have embraced a hard-nosed defensive identity. Their physicality not only wore down Joel Embiid but the Sixers' ball-handlers as well.
Games like this show that transitioning Tyrese Maxey into a point guard will have growing pains. He has done well leading up to Tuesday, but the Knicks' tenacious defense took a toll on him, Seth Curry, and Furkan Korkmaz.
Doc Rivers himself even admitted the lack of playmakers hurt the team against the Knicks. Having Simmons would have given him a playmaker with the capability to handle an intense team defense.
Games like this are a testament to Simmons' value on the floor. There are few players in the league as skilled as him when it comes to playmaking and defense.
Nobody expected the Sixers to gracefully handle life without Simmons, but their matchup Tuesday was the first time his absence was a major takeaway. With his return still up in the air, this is something the Sixers will have to find solutions to internally moving forward.
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