The Philadelphia 76ers are on the brink of securing their spot in the second round of the playoffs as they look to take out the Washington Wizards in Game 5 of their opening-round matchup. If you ask ESPN analyst Stephen A. Smith, however, he is adamant that the Sixers aren't going to win the title this year — and it has everything to do with Ben Simmons.

Simmons has made headlines of late after the Wizards exposed his weakness from the free-throw line with their Hack-a-Ben strategy in Game 4. According to Stephen A., this — and Simmons' blatant inability to shoot from the perimeter — is exactly what will lead to Philly's downfall:

“Ben Simmons, to me, is going to cost the Philadelphia 76ers a title all because he has no shooting ability,” Smith said.

Smith is never one to mince words and he absolutely did not hold back with his criticism of Ben Simmons here.

To be fair, Smith also had some high praise for Simmons, saying that the Sixers star could very well be one of the greatest players of all time if only he gets his shooting right:

“I believe that Ben Simmons is a jump shot away from being LeBron James,” said Smith. “That's how great I think Ben Simmons can be. His only impediment is his inability to shoot the basketball.”

Shooting has always been Simmons' weakness and it is quite baffling how the Sixers All-Star has been unable to develop this key facet of his game. He seems to be putting in the work though, but as it is, the results have left so much more to be desired.