#1 Pick: Ben Simmons (Originally: Ben Simmons)
As a big fan of both top players in this redraft, this was not an easy decision. But Ben Simmons still gets the nod for me. Ingram is clearly a better shooter than Simmons, a fact that is not debatable. Ben Simmons also missed his rookie season for an injury that he suffered over the summer after the draft. In Simmons’s highest-scoring season he averaged 16.9 points per game and Ingram has eclipsed that each of the last two seasons.
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And that is where the advantages end for Ingram for me. Ben Simmons is an elite defensive player, leading the league in steals this season at 2.1 while also averaging 0.6 blocks per game as well. He is able to guard every position on the court. Simmons is also an elite passer, averaged 8.0 for his career. Ingram also trails him by 3.2 rebounds per game as well.
Simmons gets criticized a lot for his lack of 3-point shooting, rightfully so. However, he is still extremely efficient (averaging 56.1 percent from the field for his career). Improving his shot from the free throw line and from distance are a priority but Simmons is elite in every other category.
Building the team around Simmons should be much easier than the Sixers have made it. It remains to be seen if Simmons and Embiid can play together at a level that will win them a championship. However, trading up and drafting a point guard the year after you draft Simmons was questionable at the time. In retrospect staying put in the draft would have yielded a better (or at least the same if the Boston Celtics would have actually taken Jayson Tatum at one after all) result.
Regardless of that, Simmons is a home run prospect. Either player was a good choice here. Simmons barely gets the edge for me
With the second pick in the 2016 NBA Redraft the Los Angeles Lakers select…