Sixers' Ben Simmons Felt Disrespected by Rudy Gobert and the Utah Jazz
It's no secret that Philadelphia 76ers guard Ben Simmons is one of the NBA's best defensive players. Although he can also be a force on the offensive end as well, oftentimes the fourth-year guard is criticized for his offensive value rather than praised for it. Especially this season, as Simmons' average scoring is down two points compared to last year's.
Lately, the Sixers guard has been on a mission offensively, though. As he's admittedly worked on improving his mental, Simmons is beginning to play a lot more aggressively, and it's paying off. On Monday night, the Sixers didn't have their go-to guy on offense, Joel Embiid, on the floor. So, somebody else had to step up.
While Sixers veteran forward Tobias Harris undoubtedly played his part, it was Simmons who decided to put the Sixers' offense on his back. In 38 minutes of action, Simmons went 15-for-26 from the field and scored a career-high of 42 points in the 134-123 loss against the Utah Jazz.
As expected, Simmons wasn't thrilled with the final outcome on Monday night as he admitted the Sixers really wanted to "win bad." However, he wasn't just unsatisfied with the final score and the outcome. Simmons also felt a sense of disrespect by the Jazz because of who they sent to guard him at times.
“I loved it when I saw Rudy (Gobert) was guarding me,” Simmons mentioned after the game. “I love being able to go at somebody like that. I felt like it was a little bit of a disrespect putting him on me, but it is what it is.”
Typically, Gobert wouldn't defend the opposing team's guards, but he took on the responsibility of sticking Simmons at times. While Simmons felt it was a disrespectful move on Utah's behalf, it was the exact outcome that Sixers head coach Doc Rivers was searching for.
“We anticipated once Joel was scratched that the lineup we put on the floor, we were trying to create a lineup where Gobert would guard Ben, and that happened,” Rivers explained. “The key for us is getting stops and getting it to Ben and getting up the floor. We just felt like no way anybody was gonna stay with him, especially the center. I thought Ben handled that very well.”
Simmons handled it well indeed. Again, the Sixers didn't get the final results that they wanted in the end, but at least they know that when Embiid is off the floor, there is a lineup that exists that would allow Simmons to use his speed on the opponent's center, taking advantage of a mismatch.
Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him on Twitter: @JGrasso_
