Former Philadelphia 76ers general manager Sam Hinkie and his multi-year rebuilding process were vindicated on Tuesday when the team won the NBA Draft lottery, giving new general manager Bryan Colangelo the No. 1 pick for the first time since he drafted Andrea Bargnani first overall for the Toronto Raptors in 2006. Ten years after the Bargnani selection, Colangelo once again finds himself in a situation where there is no consensus on who is the best prospect. Some say it is LSU forward Ben Simmons, while others prefer Duke forward Brandon Ingram.
According to Bleacher Report's Kevin Ding, the Sixers are on Team Simmons, at least for now:
The Philadelphia 76ers are leaning heavily toward taking Simmons on June 23, according to league sources, with the No. 1 overall pick they landed in the NBA draft lottery Tuesday night.
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The 76ers will further investigate Ingram, but they have great confidence in the upside of Simmons, whose ambidextrous athletic ability at 6'10" and 240 pounds comes with innate basketball instincts.
It's not as if the 76ers need to get to know Simmons to decide if they want him. Simmons was born and raised in Australia, where 76ers director of performance research and development David T. Martin was an iconic sports-science leader until leaving the Australian Institute of Sport for Philadelphia in 2015.
Sixers head coach Brett Brown also coached Simmons' father, Dave, with the Melbourne Tigers. All of that history with Simmons has allayed any concerns over his attitude and inconsistent motor during his one season at LSU.
The sweet-shooting Ingram will be offered the chance to be so exceptional in a private workout that he shifts Philadelphia's thinking, but as of now, it appears as though the Duke freshman will be available at No. 2. That would thrill the Lakers, who aren't sure if Ingram isn't better than Simmons.
This report does not mean the debate is over. CBS Sports' Sam Vecenie and Gary Parrish published mock drafts after the lottery -- Vecenie had Simmons going first, while Parrish went with Ingram. Essentially, Simmons is largely seen as the more talented prospect, with a higher upside, but it is hard to tell where he fits with the Sixers.
Simmons' best position as a pro will likely be power forward, and Philadelphia already has a frontcourt logjam with Nerlens Noel, Jahlil Okafor and Joel Embiid, who is expected to make his NBA debut next season. Also expected to make his debut for Philadelphia is forward Dario Saric, a combo forward who is probably best as a stretch-4 in today's NBA.
Ingram, on the other hand, would presumably slide in to the Sixers' small forward spot seamlessly. His biggest skill is his outside shooting, which is Simmons' biggest flaw and arguably Philadelphia's biggest area of need -- there are many.
"When you analyze the top two prospects, as far as all the reports go and the media speculation, you've got two guys that are very talented players but very different players," Colangelo said, via DraftExpress' Jonathan Givony. "[Simmons] is a ballhandling four, who actually would be in a position to initiate the offense. Very versatile. Plays multiple positions. He could actually play some 3, some 4 and probably some 5 in some situations the way the league is playing right now. But, again, the notion that he's a ballhandling 4 puts him in a unique position with our team, to be a distributor.
"As you look at a Brandon Ingram, more of a shooter, a silky smooth small forward type," Colangelo continued. "Probably can play multiple positions as well. I think you have to look at his versatility. But, the one thing that stands out is his ability to shoot the basketball, above all else. There is obviously two very interesting candidates there."
If the Sixers do go with Simmons, it probably makes Colangelo's job tougher -- what, then, will he do with all the other frontcourt players on the roster? Presumably, he would at least consider moving one, maybe two of them before Simmons, Saric and Embiid even play an NBA game. Philadelphia has big decisions coming up, and it's not just Simmons vs. Ingram.
