Minnesota Sports Forum

FNG wrote:

WolvesFan21 wrote:

lipoli390 wrote:

PorkChop wrote:Simmons has regressed in every single stat this year. And doesn't make his Fts which seems to be a point of future shooting success on here.
He also doesn't seem to bring much in the way of leadership qualities at a position that usually demands it.

Jester thinks I've consumed the Rosas KoolAid. But In reality I've consumed the PorkAid. Watching these playoffs should remind all of us that you can't have a ball-dominant, star max player who can't hit perimeter shots or free throws no matter how good he is in other areas. The Ben Simmons regular-season elixir has worn off and I'm sober enough to realize that Simmons is not going to make the Wolves a title contender.

What if Simmons is the 3rd star? Ant and KAT taking up the offense in crunch time.

The simple question I have is. Who is the better player, Simmons or DLO?

If we can straight up swap then I have to do it. The game isn't only about crunch time, every possession matters. If you take him off the court in the last few minutes, who cares? Give him more minutes during the 1st 45. :D

I honestly need someone to make a fact-based argument how DLO even approaches Simmons in terms of positive impact on his team. I think the image of Simmons ignoring the wide-open dunk in Game 7 is firmly implanted in the minds of almost all NBA fans, but the prevailing image for me is of his consistently smothering defense. He's being much-maligned for his playoff performance, but Philly was a remarkable 25.5 points per 100 possessions better with Ben on the court compared to off during these playoffs...that's extraordinary! An all-NBA defender who averages 16/8/8 on 56 eFG% for his career simply cannot be compared to a 1-way player like DLO. DLO for Simmons would never have been a talker if Ben hadn't had his silly "no dunk" moment, because NBA scouts know the two players are in different tiers. We can only hope that the scorn Simmons is getting in Philly right now is giving Rosas a gold-plated gift that could instantly transform this franchise.

You're exactly right, Simmons is a far superior player despite shooting almost no 3 pointers a year. Don't get me wrong, his poor FT shooting, especially in the playoffs with hack a Simmons is a concern. His mental lack of confidence in shooting is a concern. His paint clogging in half court is a concern. But the rest of his game is so good he impacts winning far more then DLO ever has. Stats back it up. The guy is a legit defender, rebounder, passer and finishes around the rim well. Great handle. Superb transitional player. The great outweighs the bad in my book. Easy.

If a straight up swap is offered Rosas would be a flat out idiot not to do it. Simmons instantly upgrades this defense from bottom five to top 10-15 I think instantly. He's that versatile on defense he can guard 1-5.

If you told me last season we would go from Wiggins to Simmons I would call you crazy. Buy low on this guy. Make the deal. I don't see him coming back to Philly, so some new team will have him. Get it done!

IMO Philly didn't work in the playoffs because Simmons, Embiid and Harris are all less than stellar in crunch time to get a bucket. Not just because of Simmons is limited offensively. I think Simmons, Ant and KAT are a way better balance of Offence and Defense than Simmons Embiid and Harris.

thedoper wrote:IMO Philly didn't work in the playoffs because Simmons, Embiid and Harris are all less than stellar in crunch time to get a bucket. Not just because of Simmons is limited offensively. I think Simmons, Ant and KAT are a way better balance of Offence and Defense than Simmons Embiid and Harris.

Fair point. Harris is good, but he doesn't have the shot-creating chops of an Anthony Edwards and may be not even a DLO. And then with Embiid you run into the problem of not being able to have as much freedom to create off the dribble so you have to manufacture ways to get him in isolation without being too far away from the hoop.

I think Edwards could be one of the elite shot creators and scorers of his generation.....could be I emphasize. He has to develop a floater/mid range game, but man, we saw how in the 2nd half of last season how the 19-year old could get on an absolute roll. Wasn't his 42-point game without any free throws (or close)? That's crazy rare.

Let's say the Wolves trading for Ben Simmons is sort of realistic. Part of me wishes we had kept and played RHJ this season to see a bit what that sort of player would be like next to Towns. Simmons is bigger than RHJ and clearly MUCH more talented and an even better defender but like I said it would have been interesting to see how RHJ would have done as that guy. I think the Wolves would have won some more games too. I wonder what Chris Finch thinks of Ben Simmons.

As I saw a tweet about Ben Simmons meeting with the 76ers to discuss the future... I couldn't help but notice Woj included Klutch Sports and Rich Paul being part of the proceedings.

I think it's telling. And quite deliberate.

In today's NBA, as we bandy about all these hypothetical trades and wonder about fit and salaries and whether the players would dig it... it's easy to forget how much clout some agents have.

Obviously, half of the Lakers are also Klutch clients. And while I'd normally claim that Minnesota is not a Klutch sort of place... Anthony Edwards is a client.

AbeVigodaLive wrote:As I saw a tweet about Ben Simmons meeting with the 76ers to discuss the future... I couldn't help but notice Woj included Klutch Sports and Rich Paul being part of the proceedings.

I think it's telling. And quite deliberate.

In today's NBA, as we bandy about all these hypothetical trades and wonder about fit and salaries and whether the players would dig it... it's easy to forget how much clout some agents have.

Obviously, half of the Lakers are also Klutch clients. And while I'd normally claim that Minnesota is not a Klutch sort of place... Anthony Edwards is a client.

Klutch is building their empire in Minnesota?? Simmons, Ant, 40 year old Lebron can come off the bench. Ugh the new era of business. I imagine Klutch would love all their clients in New York or LA and let the rest of the teams be represented by other agencies.

thedoper wrote:

AbeVigodaLive wrote:As I saw a tweet about Ben Simmons meeting with the 76ers to discuss the future... I couldn't help but notice Woj included Klutch Sports and Rich Paul being part of the proceedings.

I think it's telling. And quite deliberate.

In today's NBA, as we bandy about all these hypothetical trades and wonder about fit and salaries and whether the players would dig it... it's easy to forget how much clout some agents have.

Obviously, half of the Lakers are also Klutch clients. And while I'd normally claim that Minnesota is not a Klutch sort of place... Anthony Edwards is a client.

Klutch is building their empire in Minnesota?? Simmons, Ant, 40 year old Lebron can come off the bench. Ugh the new era of business. I imagine Klutch would love all their clients in New York or LA and let the rest of the teams be represented by other agencies.

Yes. I think it's more likely Anthony Edwards is the first guy to turn down the rookie extension... than another good Klutch client is pushed to Minnesota.

Other than KAT, Edwards and McDaniels, the Wolves have nothing that would interest Philly much besides draft picks. I think the Wolves are longshots to get Simmons, but if it happens there will be at least three teams involved and the Wolves would probably have to surrender at least two firsts or one first and McDaniels (yelp).

Jon K. Said on barrieo today Rosas is going to try and get Ben Simmons

kekgeek1 wrote:Jon K. Said on barrieo today Rosas is going to try and get Ben Simmons

Lots of Simmons to the Wolves rumors on the internet today. Rosas is obviously drooling to add him to this roster. But it's going to take a lot to get him, as other teams are going to be pursuing him too. Even though the numbers work, there's little chance the Sixers would be interested in a straight up DLO/Ben trade. I suspect we will have to give up Beasley and draft picks too, and have to take back George Hill's $10 million contract. I would do that in a minute and not be concerned about what picks we give up...I would expect a team anchored by KAT, Ant, McDaniels and Simmons would do very well, and our first round pick would be somewhere in the 20s...not a big loss.

The only players I would balk at including in a Simmons deal would be Ant, KAT and McDaniels, but I would consider trading DLO and McDaniels if Philly assisted on Jaden. It will be fun to see where this goes as the summer progresses.