Ben Simmons, Who Signed a $170 Million Contract, Was Hyped Up By Shaquille O’Neal as a LeBron James-Type Even Before His NBA Debut

Ben Simmons‘ career has taken an unexpected dive after his poor performance in the 2021 NBA playoffs. A former No.1 overall pick in the 2016 draft, Simmons was considered a unique talent for his ability to play point guard at 6ft 10inch. As a matter of fact, Shaquille O’Neal had compared him to LeBron James before the draft.

Simmons was selected by the Philadelphia Sixers in 2016 but missed his entire rookie season owing to an injury. He stepped on the court in 2017 and went on to win Rookie of the Year. Paired alongside Joel Embiid, Ben thrived in Philadelphia with his ability to pass the ball and defend at a high level.

However, Ben Simmons had a glaring hole in his game which eventually lead to his downfall. In a league dominated by the ability to shoot, Simmons did not have a jump shot. To make matters worse, he was unable to make his free throws in the 2021 playoffs, which led to the Philly fans heckling him out of the franchise.

Why did Shaquille O’Neal compare Ben Simmons to LeBron James?

An alumnus of Louisiana State University, Shaquille O’Neal had watched Ben Simmons play before he entered the NBA. Ben was a freshman at LSU when Shaq got a glimpse of his abilities, and the big man was immediately impressed. He said:

“He’s a LeBron-type player. What I mean by that, LeBron does a nice job of making everybody else around him better — passing the ball, doing the small things — and Ben is that type of player.”

Shaq was right in his assessment about him being an excellent passer of the ball, and he made the game easier for his teammates. Coincidentally, what plagued Simmons’ was the same deficiency that O’Neal lacked in his game. One could overcome the inability by physically dominating his opponents in the paint, while the other crumbled and fell.

How did Ben Simmons’ career take a nose-dive?

In the 2021 playoffs, Philadelphia Sixers faced the Atlanta Hawks in the Eastern Conference semi-finals matchup. The Hawks would win the series in seven games despite being an underdog. It was in this series that Ben Simmons would lose the plot and never recover.

Simmons was a below-average free throw shooter at 60%, but his percentage would drop to 33% in the series. It reached a point where anytime he caught the ball, the Atlanta players ended up fouling him. This messed up his entire flow and affected him mentally. It was evident in the fourth quarter of Game Seven when he passed an open dunk to his teammate in fear of getting fouled.

This resulted in immense backlash from the Sixers faithful and the national media. Ben did not take the court for Philly since the incident and was eventually traded to the Brooklyn Nets. His performance in Brooklyn hasn’t improved, and injuries haven’t helped either. Whether he will mount a comeback in the league remains to be seen.