Sixers' Ben Simmons Throws Shade at Jazz's Rudy Gobert Once More

Philadelphia 76ers guard Ben Simmons has taken a lot of pride in his defensive progression over the last couple of years. Since coming out of LSU as the number one pick in the 2016 NBA Draft, Simmons has emphasized improving defensively.

At this point in time, it's hard to argue against the fact that Simmons is one of the best defenders in the league. Last season, Simmons was in the conversation for Defensive Player of the Year before a back injury sidelined him for weeks before the NBA's suspension during the regular season.

When Simmons was ruled out for an extended period of time, it became clear his chances of winning DPOY would get slimmer each game that goes by where he doesn't play. By the time the voting opened up for the end of the year award, Rudy Gobert and Giannis Antetokounmpo were the favorites, leaving Simmons out of the picture.

Coming into the 2020-2021 season, Simmons had a chip on his shoulder. At this point, as the regular season winds down, the Sixers guard believes he's the frontrunner for Defensive Player of the Year. However, the two-time DPOY Rudy Gobert is his stiff competition.

The more Simmons hears about the possibility of him losing the award out to the Utah Jazz center, the more the three-time All-Star throws shade in Gobert's direction. It all started in February when the 76ers paid a visit to the Jazz at the Vivint Arena. 

Since the Sixers were without their primary scorer in Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons stepped up and looked to hold it down offensively without the big man on the court. In an attempt to slow Simmons down, the Jazz put Gobert on the guard, which turned out to be a nightmare scenario for him.

“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.”

Although the shorthanded Sixers lost in Utah on that February night, Simmons went off for a career-high of 42 points. Now, whenever he hears that Gobert could possibly snatch the DPOY award from him, Simmons points to that night and makes it clear that consistency, dominance, and versatility should play a part in the results. 

This week, Simmons issued credit where it's due to Gobert by calling him "great in the paint" on ESPN's The Jump, but he also brought up the versatility factor once again. "He guarded me in Utah," the three-time All-Star said. "And I had 42. And apparently, I'm not a scorer, so it is what it is."

Well, Simmons does make a valid point. While all 42 of Simmons' points shouldn't get placed on Gobert himself, the point still stands. Gobert had a hard time guarding a quicker player that mostly runs at point guard. In addition to that late February matchup in Utah, Simmons could also point to the early March matchup between the Sixers and the Jazz when Joel Embiid did play. 

Gobert, who was responsible for guarding Embiid in the paint where he's most comfortable, didn't exactly flash defensive star power and shut the big man down. In fact, it was hard for Gobert even to contain the big man. In 40 minutes of action, Embiid collected 40 points and 19 rebounds against Gobert and the Jazz.

While Utah's big man is still having himself a solid season and certainly deserves to be in the Defensive Player of the Year conversation once again, Ben Simmons is doing all he can to overshadow Gobert as he wants the award, perhaps more than anybody.

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