This was certainly unexpected.

TNT's Inside the NBA analyst Kenny Smith was breaking down the Philadelphia 76ers and Miami Heat series and when he got to discussing Ben Simmons as a player, he compared him to one of the most surprising players you could have guessed: Muggsy Bogues.

That's right, the shortest player to ever play in the NBA, Bogues was 5-foot-3 and still managed to be one of the best distributors during his heyday, in particular with the Charlotte Hornets. And that has to be why Smith compared Simmons to him.

Take a listen:

Simmons has become a unique player in the NBA due to his reluctance to shoot jump shots. Despite that, he's in the running for the Rookie of the Year award while he puts up historic numbers in his first season with the Sixers.

It presents a unique challenge for a defense dealing with the athlete that Simmons is, you naturally don't want to give him a ton of cushion since it can at times allow Simmons to get to dangerous spots on the floor. It's a chess game the Heat will have to play and that's what Smith was talking about when making this comparison.