“Ben Simmons missed more free throws than the entire Suns team”: Sixers star’s incredibly bad free throw shooting brought to spotlight in NBA Finals

Ben Simmons missed more free throw attempts in 12 playoff games than the Phoenix Suns team, who have played 18 playoff games so far.

The first seed in the eastern conference, the Philadelphia 76ers had a disappointing end to their 2020-21 season as they were eliminated by the 5th seed Atlanta Hawks in Game Seven of the semi-finals at home.

It would not be wrong to say that Simmons’ struggle at the free-throw line was a major contribution towards the 76ers exit in the semi-finals.

The opposing team would take full advantage of Simmons’ inefficiency at the free-throw line, especially during the clutch moments, by intentionally fouling him. The term that became popular among everyone was Hack-a-Simmons.

The 2x NBA All-Stars free-throw woes got to such a point where he would avoid taking open shots, thus making him a big liability for the team.

Also read: “I had to force Devin Booker to shoot!”: Earl Watson reveals how he changed the Suns star’s almost Ben Simmons-like mentality

The 2nd seed in the western conference, Phoenix Suns have clinched a spot in the NBA Finals for the first time since 1993. One of the talking points of the Arizona team has been its free-throw shooting.

The team made 1124 out of 1347 free-throw attempts during the 2020-21 regular season. The Suns were 83.4% from the free-throw line during the season.

Comparing Ben Simmons’ free-throw statistics with the Phoenix Suns

Simmons shot a dismal 34.2% from the free-throw line during the 2021 NBA Playoffs. The 76ers point guard made a mere 25 out of the 73 shots he attempted at the free-throw line.

Worst FT% by a player in a single playoff run (min 50 attempts):

27.3 — Ben Wallace in 2006
32.8 — Ben Simmons this playoffs
37.3 — DeAndre Jordan in 2016 pic.twitter.com/PLyx2QwG3s

— StatMuse (@statmuse) June 17, 2021

The Phoenix Suns, who are currently considered as strong favorites to win the NBA championship this year, have shot an incredible 86.9% from the free-throw line so far in the 2021 NBA Playoffs.

The Suns have made 299 out of the 344 attempts from the free-throw line.

The Suns are shooting 87.0% on free throws, the highest mark by a team in NBA playoff history (min 10 games).

They shot 25/26 in Game 1. pic.twitter.com/nQA3ppe5Rl

— StatMuse (@statmuse) July 7, 2021

The Phoenix backcourt consisting of Devin Booker and Chris Paul has shot an impressive 92.0% and 89.7% respectively from the free-throw line during the 2021 NBA Playoffs so far.

Also read: “How can Ben Simmons have confidence when he’s surrounded by bulls**t?!”: 76ers star’s brother, Liam Simmons, likes tweets criticizing Joel Embiid and Doc Rivers

There is no denying that Simmons is one of the finest talents in the NBA. The 24-year old is a great defender and playmaker. However, his inability to shoot the ball has prevented him to elevate his game to the next level.

In what many analysts believe he is a jump-shot away from being LeBron James 2.0.