Ben Simmons to the Celtics?
Should the Boston Celtics pursue the disgruntled 76ers all star point guard Ben Simmons? Shams Charania of the Athletic and Stadium reported that the Boston Celtics and the Philadelphia 76ers were “engaged in” talks of trading Ben Simmons to the Celtics for all star guard Jaylen Brown. According to the Boston Herald, the Celtics have said those trade talks are “untrue”, but let’s think about it from the perspective of a Celtics fan.
At first glance, trading for a 3x all star, 2x defensive player of the year, and 1x all NBA team for a 1x all star seems like a steal. Then, you remember that Jaylen Brown, for most of his career has been overshadowed by Jayson Tatum. The last 3 years Jaylen Brown has averaged at least 20 ppg and has improved every year all while establishing a chemistry on and off the court with teammate and 2x all star Jayson Tatum.
What the Celtics need is shooting and what Simmons would bring to the team, would be the complete opposite. Simmons is a great facilitator as well as one of the best passers and defenders in the league, but take him out of the paint and he isn’t scoring. Brown is a great defender and a great playmaker but one thing that separates him from Simmons is his ability to score from anywhere on the court. Need a deep 3 to tie the game? Brown did that against the NY Knicks earlier this year. Need a big dunk? Brown did that against Miles Bridges earlier this year (and LeBron James last year).
Brown is a key piece to this Celtics team and trading him would be crazy unless it was for a player of his caliber or better, which Simmons is not in my opinion mostly due to scoring. That being said, if the Celtics can somehow manage a trade for Simmons without trading Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, or Marcus Smart I say go for it. Simmons would be able to get the ball to those 3 at any time and with the spacing could be left open in the paint, where he thrives. He wouldn’t need to worry about taking the last shot in a big game so he wouldn’t have too much pressure. I wouldn’t mind Simmons to the Celtics, just not at the price of JB.
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