<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #333333;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px;    font-size: 18px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: #333333;    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px;    font-size: 16px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: #0000FF;    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 16px;    text-decoration: none;}ul {    color: #333333;    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 16px;}ol {    color: #333333;    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: #333333;    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    padding: 0px 0px 0px 15px;    font-size: 16px;    border-left: 2px solid black;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: #333333;    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 12px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;    background-color: #EFEFEF;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article><header><figure><img src="https://clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/The-reason-Ben-Simmons-is-the-best-defender-in-the-NBA-per-Dwight-Howard.jpg"></figure><h1>The reason Sixers star Ben Simmons is the best defender in the NBA, per Dwight Howard</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2021-02-26T07:11:00-08:00">February 26th, 7:11am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2021-02-26T07:12:32-08:00">February 26th, 7:12am</time><address><a>Mike Cruz</a></address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Philadelphia 76ers center Dwight Howard definitely knows a thing or two about defense. The 35-year-old owns three Defensive Player of the Year trophies, which he won in three consecutive seasons from 2009 to 2011 during his prime with the Orlando Magic. With that said, Howard is seeing firsthand just how much of a force Sixers teammate Ben Simmons is on that end of the floor.</p><p>Howard loves the way Simmons is playing defensively this season and argued that the Aussie’s versatility on that end makes him the best defensive player in the NBA.</p><p>Via <a href="https://www.nbcsports.com/philadelphia/sixers/ben-simmons-nba-defensive-player-of-the-year-dwight-howard-sixers-luka-doncic">Noah Levick of NBC Sports</a>:</p><blockquote>“I’m very happy to see how well Ben has been playing on defense,” Howard said following the Sixers’ 111-97 win Thursday night over the Mavericks. “It’s been amazing. He’s picking up guards, he’s playing bigs, he’s playing one through five.A couple games ago, he was playing against Rudy Gobert, and now he’s playing against Luka (Doncic). He’s taken the idea that I can play anybody, that I can check anybody on defense. I believe he’s the best defensive player in the league right now. He’s doing an amazing job.”</blockquote><p>Howard indeed makes an outstanding point with this one. What Simmons is able to do defensively is truly remarkable, with the way he can guard pretty much 1 through 5.</p><p>The Sixers star’s length and strength allow him to take on elite big men around the league, while his speed and athleticism help him him in step when guarding some of the best perimeter players in the NBA. What’s more exceptional about Simmons, however, is his willingness to take on the challenge of guarding the best player on the opposing team, regardless of their position. His commitment on that end of the floor has helped the Sixers boast a top-five defense and the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/sports/nba/philadelphia-76ers/records" rel="noopener">best record</a> in the Eastern Conference.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

The reason Sixers star Ben Simmons is the best defender in the NBA, per Dwight Howard

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #333333;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px;    font-size: 18px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: #333333;    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px;    font-size: 16px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: #0000FF;    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 16px;    text-decoration: none;}ul {    color: #333333;    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 16px;}ol {    color: #333333;    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: #333333;    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    padding: 0px 0px 0px 15px;    font-size: 16px;    border-left: 2px solid black;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: #333333;    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 12px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;    background-color: #EFEFEF;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article><header><figure><img src="https://clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Luka-Doncic-Mavs-Sixers-Ben-Simmons.jpg"></figure><h1>Luka Doncic unbothered by Ben Simmons’ defensive prowess</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2021-02-25T21:09:03-08:00">February 25th, 9:09pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2021-02-25T21:09:03-08:00">February 25th, 9:09pm</time><address><a>Virgil Villanueva</a></address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Dallas Mavericks star Luka Doncic was limited to just 19 points in their loss to the Philadelphia 76ers on Thursday. Analysts credited Ben Simmons for containing Doncic <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/sports/nba/dallas-mavericks/stats">way below his averages</a>. But as far as Doncic is concerned, he just had a bad game. It had nothing to do with Simmons.</p><p>Per <a href="https://twitter.com/espn_macmahon?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1365137380714287104%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fclutchpoints.com%2Fwp-admin%2Fpost.php%3Fpost%3D1018907action%3Dedit">Tim MacMahon of ESPN</a>, Doncic admitted he doesn’t really care who’s defending him. All he cares about is getting to his spots and getting his teammates involved.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Luka Doncic, asked about Ben Simmons' defensive prowess: "I don't really pay attention to who's on me. I just try to play my game. Sometimes I'm gonna play it better, sometimes worse."</p><p>— Tim MacMahon (@espn_macmahon) <a href="https://twitter.com/espn_macmahon/status/1365137380714287104?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank">February 26, 2021</a></p></blockquote><p></p></figure><p>It’s an interesting answer given that almost everyone considers Simmons one hell of a defensive player. Simmons did lead the NBA in steals last season and was also selected to the NBA All-Defensive First Team. Simmons himself believes he’s a stellar and versatile defender.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">“I’m the best defensive player in the league. I can guard 1 through 5.”</p><p>– Ben Simmons on his defense. 🔐</p><p>(via <a href="https://twitter.com/ScoopB?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank">@ScoopB</a>) <a href="https://t.co/MjvfNkP1VI" target="_blank">pic.twitter.com/MjvfNkP1VI</a></p><p>— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheHoopCentral/status/1365135116419301379?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank">February 26, 2021</a></p></blockquote><p></p></figure><p>In the 76ers’ 111-97 win over the Mavericks, Simmons matched up with Doncic for most of the game. Doncic finished with 19 points, a pretty productive night no matter where you look at it. But this is way below his average of 28.9 points per game. He only shot 6-of-13 from the field, including 3-of-6 from deep. Doncic also had seven turnovers.</p><p>Is this a budding rivalry between Simmons and Doncic? The soft-spoken Mavericks superstar rarely flexes his skills during interviews. But after the Sixers game, it seems that he’s either unbothered by Simmons’ defense or completely irritated by it.</p><p>Be as it may, fans should look forward to the next duel between the two All-Stars. After all, Luka Doncic has proven that he’s a fierce competitor. It is for certain that he’ll want to get his revenge on Ben Simmons.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Luka Doncic unbothered by Ben Simmons’ defensive prowess

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #333333;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px;    font-size: 18px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: #333333;    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px;    font-size: 16px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: #0000FF;    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 16px;    text-decoration: none;}ul {    color: #333333;    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 16px;}ol {    color: #333333;    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: #333333;    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    padding: 0px 0px 0px 15px;    font-size: 16px;    border-left: 2px solid black;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: #333333;    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 12px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;    background-color: #EFEFEF;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article><header><figure><img src="https://clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Joel-Embiid-Charles-Barkley-Shaquille-ONeal-Ben-Simmons-Sixers.jpg"></figure><h1>Ben Simmons vocal on Joel Embiid’s dominance to Shaq, Charles Barkley</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2021-02-25T20:13:19-08:00">February 25th, 8:13pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2021-02-25T20:13:19-08:00">February 25th, 8:13pm</time><address><a>Kriel Ibarrola</a></address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Ben Simmons talked with the <a href="https://twitter.com/NBAonTNT?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor">NBA on TNT</a> duo of Charles Barkley and Shaquille O’Neal on Thursday following another strong outing in the Philadelphia 76ers’ 11-97 victory over the Dallas Mavericks at Wells Fargo Center. While the spotlight was on him after recording all-around numbers of 15 points, three rebounds, seven assists, two steals, and a block, Simmons couldn’t help but also deflect credit to his fellow All-Star teammate Joel Embiid.</p><p>The Sixers are currently the top dogs in the Eastern Conference with an incredible 22-11 start, due in large part to Embiid playing at an MVP level this season. Barkley and O’Neal noted the great strides Embiid has had this campaign, something that Simmons has seen first-hand.</p><blockquote>“I think he’s (Embiid) realizing. It takes time. He’s figuring out how dominant he can be. He came into the season in great shape. He’s been taking care of his body and he’s been giving us everything”.</blockquote><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">"I think he's just figuring out how dominant he can be."<a href="https://twitter.com/BenSimmons25?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank">@BenSimmons25</a> talks <a href="https://twitter.com/JoelEmbiid?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank">@JoelEmbiid</a> with the Inside crew after the <a href="https://twitter.com/sixers?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank">@sixers</a> win over the Mavericks. <a href="https://t.co/zLWbmITcjd" target="_blank">pic.twitter.com/zLWbmITcjd</a></p><p>— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBAonTNT/status/1365135134928764928?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank">February 26, 2021</a></p></blockquote><p></p></figure><p>The do-it-all guard from Australia also made it clear that the Sixers intend to keep that number one seed in the much-improved Eastern Conference.</p><p>Embiid, meanwhile, was again the best player on the floor against the Mavericks, tallying a game-high 23 points, along with nine rebounds, four assists, two steals, and one block in 28 minutes. Shaq and Sir Charles have been known to put some of this generation’s best players on blast, but it’s clear they are impressed with <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/sports/nba/philadelphia-76ers/stats">what Embiid has done this season</a>.</p><p>Ben Simmons, on the other hand, understands that the Sixers will go as far as Joel Embiid takes them. His stellar play as of late has also been a great sign for Doc Rivers and the rest of the crew as they look to make their mark as legitimate title contenders.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Ben Simmons vocal on Joel Embiid’s dominance to Shaq, Charles Barkley

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #333333;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px;    font-size: 18px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: #333333;    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px;    font-size: 16px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: #0000FF;    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 16px;    text-decoration: none;}ul {    color: #333333;    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 16px;}ol {    color: #333333;    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: #333333;    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    padding: 0px 0px 0px 15px;    font-size: 16px;    border-left: 2px solid black;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: #333333;    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 12px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;    background-color: #EFEFEF;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article><header><figure><img src="https://clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Lakers-Shaquille-ONeal-Kobe-Bryant-Sixers-Joel-Embiid-Ben-Simmons-Charles-Barkley.jpg"></figure><h1>Shaquille O’Neal reacts to Ben Simmons-Joel Embiid comparison with Lakers’ Shaq-Kobe</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2021-02-25T18:30:12-08:00">February 25th, 6:30pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2021-02-25T18:30:53-08:00">February 25th, 6:30pm</time><address><a>Paolo Songco</a></address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Charles Barkley just likened the Philadelphia 76ers duo of Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid to the legendary Los Angeles Lakers duo of Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal. Shaq’s reaction is too good not to garner it’s own new article. Heck, this might actually end up being a viral meme.</p><p>Here’s what Shaq thinks of Sir Charles’ comparison:</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Charles Barkley says Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons are 'Shaq and Kobe-like.'</p><p>Shaq's reaction 🤣🍵<a href="https://t.co/KNvCfBe5J1" target="_blank">pic.twitter.com/KNvCfBe5J1</a></p><p>— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPointsApp) <a href="https://twitter.com/ClutchPointsApp/status/1365120289479163909?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank">February 26, 2021</a></p></blockquote><p></p></figure><p>Before anything else, let’s show our respect to Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid. These two have been playing some outstanding basketball this season — arguably the best in their career as a duo — and it has resulted in Philly owning the best record in the East right now. We need to give credit where it is due.</p><p>However, to utter their names in the same sentence as Lakers’ Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal — two of the greatest players of all time and arguably the best duo in NBA history — just sounds like slander at this point. Shaq clearly disagrees with the comparison, but he decided to just sit this argument out. He probably knew that it would be folks like myself that were going to crucify Barkley for his disrespectful comments. We’re actually surprised Shaw didn’t spit out his drink in utter shock.</p><p>In his defense, Barkley did try to justify his comments. Try. And failed. The Hall of Famer has been right many times in the past, but this is a particular subject that I personally cannot agree with.</p><p>Ben and Joel are going to go down in history as great players. They might even be in store for a championship or two. Until then, however, let’s hold off the Kobe-Shaq comparisons because we know just<a href="https://clutchpoints.com/sports/nba/los-angeles-lakers/roster"> how special they were with the Lakers</a>.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Shaquille O’Neal reacts to Ben Simmons-Joel Embiid comparison with Lakers’ Shaq-Kobe

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #333333;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px;    font-size: 18px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: #333333;    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px;    font-size: 16px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: #0000FF;    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 16px;    text-decoration: none;}ul {    color: #333333;    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 16px;}ol {    color: #333333;    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: #333333;    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    padding: 0px 0px 0px 15px;    font-size: 16px;    border-left: 2px solid black;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: #333333;    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 12px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;    background-color: #EFEFEF;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article><header><figure><img src="https://clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/ben-3.jpg"></figure><h1>Sixers’ Ben Simmons goes to work on Mavs’ Luka Doncic for nifty spin and reverse finish</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2021-02-25T17:45:03-08:00">February 25th, 5:45pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2021-02-25T17:45:46-08:00">February 25th, 5:45pm</time><address><a>Paolo Songco</a></address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Thursday night featured a highly-anticipated individual battle between two of the top point guards in the NBA, Ben Simmons and Luka Doncic. The Philadelphia 76ers were hosting the Dallas Mavericks in the Wells Fargo Center and it didn’t take long for Simmons to come up with a highlight play for the Sixers against the Mavs star.</p><p>Here’s Ben showcasing his skills on the post against Luka, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/sports/nba/philadelphia-76ers/news">who let’s be honest</a>, didn’t stand much of a chance against Simmons down low (h/t NBA on Twitter):</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Simmons spins and gets the tough reverse to fall!<a href="https://twitter.com/dallasmavs?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank">@dallasmavs</a> 35<a href="https://twitter.com/sixers?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank">@sixers</a> 48</p><p>11 PTS for Ben on TNT <a href="https://t.co/fiETntoXF5" target="_blank">pic.twitter.com/fiETntoXF5</a></p><p>— NBA (@NBA) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBA/status/1365107127828758534?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank">February 26, 2021</a></p></blockquote><p></p></figure><p>Ben Simmons pulled off a tremendous <a href="https://twitter.com/NBA/status/1365107127828758534?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1365107127828758534%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_c10&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fclutchpoints.com%2Fwp-admin%2Fpost.php%3Fpost%3D1018684action%3Dedit">spin move</a> to shake off Doncic on the play. The awesome reverse finish served as the icing on top of the cake.</p><p>Mavs big man Boban Marjanovic tried to offer some weakside help for Doncic, but Ben Simmons was just too quick on the spin. Boban came just in time to inbound the ball after Simmons’ deuce. Doncic, on the other hand, couldn’t do anything anymore but watch.</p><p>The Sixers are have won three of their last four games and are looking to log another victory against the Mavs here. Philly has been nothing short of outstanding to start the season, as they continue to dominate the Eastern Conference. Ben Simmons and Co. currently hold a 21-11 record and are sitting at the top seed in the East.</p><p>The Eastern Conference is a very weird place this season. Few teams have managed to climb above .500, which means that a number of big-name teams are in the playoff mix despite being under the break-even mark. The Boston Celtics and Miami Heat aren’t likely to get top-three seeds in the East playoffs this season, but the fact that they are both struggling might not keep them out of the playoffs. With so few teams doing well in the East, Boston and Miami could still make the playoffs and, once there, start fresh. The Sixers and Ben Simmons know that while being in first place is certainly a good position to inhabit, it hardly means that Philadelphia has the inside track to the NBA Finals.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Sixers’ Ben Simmons goes to work on Mavs’ Luka Doncic for nifty spin and reverse finish

Blake Griffin

Anthony Davis

Kevin Love

John Wall

Ben Simmons

Joel Embiid

Kyle Kuzma

Jimmy Butler

Draymond Green

D'Angelo Russell

2x All Star

2017-18 ROY

2017-18 All-Rookie

2019-20 STL Champ

2019-20 All-Defensive

2019-20 All-NBA

3x All Star

Philadelphia 76ers

Career

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Caught up with @Esquire Curated to share some of my favorite things, including @callofduty 🔥 #CallofDuty_Partner 

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Who’s ballin with me in @NBA2K today? Pick up my Pink Diamond card in #MyTEAM Inferno Packs now🔥 

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2020-21 SEASON STATS
PTS	REB	AST	BLK	STL
15.7	8.3	7.9	0.8	1.6

2020-21 SEASON STATS
PTS	REB	AST	BLK	STL
15.7	8.3	7.9	0.8	1.6

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Sixers’ Ben Simmons goes to work on Mavs’ Luka Doncic for nifty spin and reverse finish