Kendrick Perkins Defends Ben Simmons After Commentator Called Him Overrated

Philadelphia 76ers All-Star Ben Simmons wasn't on the court for his team on Friday night against the Washington Wizards. As he's in the NBA's health and safety protocol due to COVID-19 contact tracing, Simmons was ruled out for Friday's game.

However, he was still a topic of conversation on Friday night on the Washington Wizards' broadcast. Justin Kutcher, an NBC Sports Washington commentator, offered a critical opinion on Simmons during the broadcast of Friday night's game.

Like everything controversial these days, a clip of the audio was posted on social media, which spread like wildfire as Sixers fans got riled up because of the comments.

“I’ve said it before, and I know I’ll take flak for it,” Kutcher said. “I think Ben Simmons is one of if not the most overrated player in the NBA. He’s got so much love and attention that people aren’t paying attention to what Tobias Harris is doing on the floor.”

76ers fans came to Simmons' defense on Friday night, as expected. But they didn't defend the three-time All-Star alone. Former NBA big man Kendrick Perkins also took to Twitter to express his disappointment in the comment.

"Did he just say that Ben Simmons is the most overrated player in the league?" Perkins tweeted. "Shame on him. This gotta be the most disturbing thing I’ve heard all year. He do realize that Simmons is the front runner for DPOY?! #ridiculous."

Simmons, who received his third All-Star bid this season, certainly isn't a perfect player or a finished product. Obviously, it's well-known the veteran guard could work on his three-pointer and overall jump shot.

But to call him overrated seems like a stretch. The veteran guard is one of, if not the best defender in the league who can guard anybody on the floor no matter the position. And although he has a lot of room for improvement on offense, he's still a reliable scorer and playmaker for the Sixers.

Simmons still has a long way to go before he reaches the LeBron James comparisons he garnered when he first entered the league, but he's still a star in the NBA nonetheless. Simmons receives a ton of criticism on a daily. So, it's hard to believe he could be considered overrated at this point.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_ & Instagram: @JGrassoNBA.