re: Charles Barkley says Ben Simmons isn't ready for the NBA

quote:

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The college game was ruined when they let them go right out of HS. And I have no problem with three years.. UK a couple years ago won the title with a bunch of freshman.. But it doesn't happen that often.... I like seeing a guy spend his 3-4 years at a school... Say what you want but its a time in your life you will never get back. But hey If they are good enough to make it rich I can't harp on them either... Ben would be stupid to stay....

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If Simmons' primary desire is to get rich, he's going to achieve that.

If his primary desire is to be a truly great player (and just so happen to get rich along the way), then... I don't know.

Right now he's a novelty, a tantalizing combination of incredible physical gifts and a good knowledge of the game. Certainly, some GM thinks he can become a great player. But he severely lacks even basic offensive skills; he doesn't have any shot outside of a layup. No go-to shot at 10 ft that is money, like a turnaround jumper or hook, or a sweet bank shot. No outside jumper at all. All those passing skills are pointless if the defense doesn't respect him, they rely on him drawing a double. But why double him, when you can just protect the rim from the drive? And for those saying that he will draw fouls- so? His FT game has actually declined over the season (whereas Victor's got better), so I think his shot might be harder to improve than we suspect.

I wonder how long a team will wait for their number one pick to develop, before they move on to the next guy.