Rivers Remains 'Bullish' on Ben Simmons Following Playoff Letdown

The critics always said Ben Simmons' unwillingness to expand his shooting range beyond the inside of the paint would limit the Philadelphia 76ers in the playoffs as the game slows down and half-court offenses are tested.

Before this year's postseason run, the theory was proven to be correct as Simmons struggled in two second-round series against the Boston Celtics and the Toronto Raptors in back-to-back playoff runs.

In 2021, Simmons and the Sixers were challenged once again. In a seven-game series against the Atlanta Hawks during the second round of the playoffs, Simmons' scoring was almost non-existent at times.

Although he distributed the ball well, the non-shooting threat gave the Sixers spacing issues once again. For most of the series against the Hawks, the 76ers struggled to find an offensive rhythm, especially in Game 7.

And when the Hawks felt the game was close enough, they would challenge Simmons even more by intentionally fouling him, forcing him to shoot free throws and generate points for the Sixers. As a result, the veteran point guard struggled as he drained just 33-percent of his foul shots throughout the entire series. 

Simmons averaged less than 10 points per game in the second-round series, scoring single digits in four of seven games. It was his worst scoring average in a playoff series throughout his entire career, and it came in year four.

Following the Game 7 letdown on Sunday night, Sixers head coach Doc Rivers didn't offer a lot of confidence in the idea that Simmons could be a point guard on a championship-winning team. "I don't know that question or the answer to that right now," he said. "You know, so I don't know the answer to that."

After digesting the loss, Rivers offered a lot more confidence in Simmons the following day. Although Rivers acknowledges that Simmons has a lot to work on this offseason, the 76ers head coach remains committed to helping the struggling three-time All-Star this summer.

“I’m very bullish on Ben," Rivers said on Monday afternoon. "But there’s work, and Ben will be willing to do it. That’s the key. Sometimes you have to go through stuff to see it and be honest with it. Obviously, what Ben just went through, I can’t imagine that, because he has so much greatness around him and all the things that he does.”

Simmons wasn't kidding himself throughout the playoff series. Following Philly's Game 5 loss at home, the veteran guard admitted his free-throw shooting is an issue and identified his struggles as a mental problem when at the line.

Then, after his poor offensive showing in Game 7, Simmons mentioned he had a bad series. Admitting his struggles is a positive step in the right direction, but now Simmons has to be willing to work on his weak spots, which Rivers identified during his final press conference of the season.

“Some of the stuff is obvious,” Rivers explained. “We’re not hiding that Ben has to become a better free-throw shooter and a more confident free-throw shooter. If that happens, I really believe a lot of other parts of his game follows. I said that, if you remember, before the season started; the first thing I said was we got to get him to the line 10 times a night. So we got to put in work so he can get there, but if we can get him there, man, his game goes to a different level.”

Getting Simmons to where Rivers wants him to be won't be an easy task, which the head coach admitted. However, being around the veteran point guard for a full season now, Rivers is confident he can help Simmons take that next step. 

"I look at this as a great challenge," Rivers finished. "But [it's] definitely a doable one.”

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