Nothing but Net: Simmons needs a triple threat to pass into stardom
There is much to like about Philadelphia 76ers guard Ben Simmons; he routinely puts up triple-doubles and is big and strong and one of the best passers in the game. But … it’s hard in this day and age to consider an NBA point guard as an all-star or something special if he can’t shoot and Simmons either can’t, or won’t. He made a 22-foot jump shot in Philly’s Christmas Day loss to Boston and it was the longest shot he’d made in his entire career. That’s 764 field goals in 1,376 attempts as of Thursday and none were longer than 22 feet. He has not attempted a single three-pointer this season, missed all 11 threes he attempted last season and no matter how skilled he is in other aspects of the game, he cannot be considered an all- around threat if he can’t or won’t shoot.
TAKING THE LEAD:
DeMar DeRozan, who gets his first shot at his old team next week in San Antonio, added another entry to his list of records this week. DeRozan had 30 points as the Spurs upset the West-leading Denver Nuggets on Wednesday night, elevating his career points total to 14,112. It’s the most points scored in the NBA by any player to have played college ball at USC, where DeRozan spent one season. He passed Gus Williams (14,093) on the list of all-time Trojan NBA scorers; Paul Westphal is third with 12,809. DeRozan remains the all-time leading scorer in Raptors history — 13,296 of his career points were scored in a Toronto uniform.
SO MUCH FOR BEING HOT:
The Los Angeles Clippers had a shooting night for the ages this week against the Warriors, connecting on 18 three-pointers on just 23 attempts. The .783 shooting percentage was an NBA record for a team making at least 18 threes in a game. Yes, that’s an esoteric stat, but someone figured it out and it’s at least marginally interesting. The previous best was a 73.1 per cent shooting mark. And it did nothing to help the Clippers, actually. They lost 129-127 on a last-second Stephen Curry layup. Golden State made 14 threes in that game, but on 40 attempts.
IRRELEVANT NO LONGER:
For years, the Brooklyn Nets have been an NBA afterthought, trying to dig out from the trade (getting Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett from the Celtics for three first-round draft picks in 2014, 2016 and 2018) that sent them plunging into obscurity.
It appears they have perhaps made it.
With an overtime victory over the Charlotte Hornets on Wednesday night, the Nets are the hottest team in the NBA after winning nine of their last 10 games. Even with the absence of budding star Caris LaVert, the Nets are within a game of sixth place in the Eastern Conference going into action of Thursday night and are very much in the playoff picture.
KEEPING PERSPECTIVE:
San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich can be a bit, um, acerbic during interviews. He’s not one to suffer fools or foolish questions gladly and his sometimes gruff style might rub the odd person the wrong way. But he can have a way with words and isn’t afraid to share his real feelings. The latest? Popovich was asked this week about his thoughts on how the Denver Nuggets’ Nikola Jokic is “revolutionizing” the centre position in the NBA these days. Said Popovich: “When I think of revolutions, I think of people like Che Guevara and Vladimir Ilyich Lenin. I don’t think of Jokic, so I think you are a bit hyperbolic there. But he is one heck of a player.” Can’t argue with that logic.