Trae Young mocks Ben Simmons for his ability at free-throw shooting as he intentionally fouls him in the 4th quarter of Game 3.
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The 76ers defeated the Hawks 111-127 in Game 3. The win had the 76ers chip in equally as a team during the whole game. There were some great performances by Joel Embiid, Tobias Harris, and Ben Simmons.
Ben Simmons had a great performance on both ends of the floor. The former rookie of the year did an excellent job of containing Trae Young, who has been sensational in the 2021 NBA Playoffs averaging 28.8 PPG on 44.9% shooting from the field.
Though Simmons had only 4 points in the first half of the game, he covered up his offensive deficit in the 3rd quarter. The 3x NBA All-Star had 11 of his 18 points in the 3rd quarter as the 76ers were able to outscore the Hawks by 15 points.
Trae Young trolls Ben Simmons for his struggles from the free-throw line
In the 8 games played so far in the 2021 Playoffs, Simmons is a dismal 35.4% from the free-throw line. The point guard has hit only 17 out of his 48 shots from the line.
Simmons’ inefficiency from the free-throw line has often been exploited by the opposing team, with players intentionally fouling him during the final minutes of the game.
A case in point being Game 3, where Simmons was 4-from-8 from the free-throw line. There was an instance during the match when Hawks guard Trae Young took a jibe at Simmons asking the referee to let him shoot free throws as he fouled him.
Trae fouls Ben and asks the ref to give him free throws. pic.twitter.com/yhxAZL57Cb
— Rob Perez (@WorldWideWob) June 12, 2021
There is no denying that Ben Simmons is one of the most talented players in the league today. The perfect floor general, who runs the offense for the 76ers.
However, Simmons’ inability to develop a jump shot has often landed him into trouble and been a hurdle in his overall development as a player.
ESPN analyst and First Take host Stephen A. Smith had this to say about the 1st pick in the 2016 NBA Draft: “Ben Simmons is a jump shot away from being the second coming of Lebron James, Everything else is there. He’s my defensive player of the year.”