Ben Simmons
Benjamin David Simmons (born 20 July 1996) is an Australian professional basketball player for the Brooklyn Nets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for one season with the LSU Tigers, after which he was named a consensus first-team All-American and the USBWA National Freshman of the Year. Simmons was selected with the first overall pick in the 2016 NBA draft by the Philadelphia 76ers. After sitting out a year due to an injured right foot, he was named the NBA Rookie of the Year in 2018 and was selected three times to  the NBA All-Star Game. As the result of a holdout from the 76ers following the 2020–21 season, Simmons is the most-fined player in NBA history. Simmons attended Box Hill Senior Secondary College in his hometown of Melbourne, Victoria, before moving to the United States to attend Montverde Academy in Montverde, Florida. In his only season in college, LSU began the season with high expectations, but they failed to qualify for the NCAA Tournament. Simmons left school to enter the NBA draft, becoming the third Melbourne-born number one overall pick (following Andrew Bogut and Kyrie Irving) in 11  years. Simmons is the son of an American-born father, Dave, who played professional basketball in Australia. A dual citizen of Australia and the United States, Simmons has played for the Australian national team. Early life. Simmons was born in the Melbourne suburb of Fitzroy to father Dave and mother Julie. His father is an African-American expatriate who became a naturalised citizen of Australia, and his mother is a white Australian. He was raised alongside five brothers and sisters—Melissa, Emily, Liam, Sean and Olivia—the first four being from his mother's previous marriage. His father played college  basketball for Oklahoma City University in the United States before turning professional with the Melbourne Tigers in Australia's National Basketball League in 1989. Simmons was raised in Newcastle from the age of 18 months while his father played and coached in the city. Simmons began playing basketball at the age of seven in the Newcastle Hunters' under-12 representative team and played two more years for Lake Macquarie and Newcastle. While in Newcastle, he also played junior rugby league. At age 10, Simmons returned to Melbourne and began playing junior basketball for the Knox Raiders. Along with basketball, he also  played Australian rules football at the junior level. In year 7, while attending Whitefriars College, Simmons was named MVP after he helped Whitefriars win the Year-7 Division 1A Basketball premiership. As a teenager, Simmons was torn between his two loves of basketball and Australian rules football, but he eventually decided to focus on basketball. In year 9, at the age of 15, Simmons played basketball for Box Hill Senior Secondary College at the 2011 Australian Schools Championships before taking up a scholarship at the Australian Institute of Sport in 2012. Later that year, Simmons made his first appearance in the  United States at the renowned Pangos All-American Camp for basketball prospects. Despite being only 15 years old, he was chosen to represent Australia at the 2012 FIBA Under-17 World Championship. High school career. Sophomore year. In January 2013, Simmons moved to the U.S. to compete against boys of comparable size and athleticism. He attended Montverde Academy in Montverde, Florida, where he immediately started playing. In April 2013, he helped Montverde rally from a 16-point deficit to beat New Jersey's St Benedict's 67–65 in the final of the High School National Tournament. After competing in the Jordan  Brand Classic International Game, he returned to Melbourne where he joined the Bulleen Boomers of the Big V competition in June 2013. He played six games for Bulleen while averaging 12.3 points, 8.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.3 steals, and 2.3 blocks per game. On 14 October 2013, Simmons committed to Louisiana State University, picking LSU over other offers from Kentucky, Kansas, and Duke. Junior year. Simmons returned to Montverde Academy for his junior season in 2013–14. On the season, Simmons averaged 18.5 points, 9.8 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game while shooting 69 per cent from the field and 77  per cent from the free throw line. He recorded 88 blocks as well. Montverde finished the season with a 28–0 record, closing with a 71–62 victory over Oak Hill Academy in the High School National Tournament at Madison Square Garden. Simmons had 24 points and 12 rebounds as he earned MVP honours. Following the season, he was named America's top high school junior and was voted MVP at the National Basketball Players' Association Top 100 camp. Senior year. On 12 November 2014, Simmons signed a National Letter of Intent to play college basketball for LSU. On 12 December 2014 , Simmons scored 22 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assist in a 78–64 win against Ivan Rabb and Bishop O'Dowd High School. On 20 December 2014, Simmons put up 37 points and 18 rebounds in a 62–59 victory over St. Francis. On 19 January 2015, Simmons scored 36 points and 9 rebounds in a 76–57 win over Bishop Gorman. On 28 January 2015, Simmons was named as a starter for the East team to compete in the 38th annual McDonald's All-American Game. On 10 March 2015, he was named the Morgan Wootten Award winner, given annually to the best  male McDonald's All-American player who exemplifies outstanding character, exhibits leadership, and embodies the values of being a student-athlete in the classroom and in the community. In doing so, he became just the second player from a Florida high school to win the award behind Austin Rivers in 2011. He was then named the Naismith Prep Player of the Year on 12 March and the Gatorade National Player of the Year on 24 March after leading the Eagles to a 28–1 record and a berth in the High School National Tournament for the third straight year. In 29  regular season games, he averaged 28.0 points, 11.9 rebounds, 4.0 assists, and 2.6 steals per game while shooting 70.7 per cent from the field and recording 24 double-doubles. After competing in the 2015 McDonald's All-American Game on 1 April, Simmons led Montverde Academy to a third consecutive High School National Tournament title with a 70–61 win over Oak Hill Academy on 4 April at Madison Square Garden. He again earned MVP honours after recording 58 points and 35 rebounds over the three-day tournament. He then competed in the 2015 Nike Hoop Summit for the World Team  on 11 April and scored 13 points in a 103–101 win over Team USA. Considered a five-star recruit by ESPN.com, Simmons was listed as the No. 1 power forward and the No. 1 player in the nation in 2015. College career. Entering his freshman year of college, Simmons began his career on a four-stop national tour in Australia with the LSU Tigers. In this opportunity to play basketball in his home country, Simmons made his debut for LSU on 15 August in an 89–75 win over the Newcastle All-Stars in the first game of LSU's preseason  Australia trip. His double-double of 22 points and 10 rebounds led the way for the Tigers, playing at the Newcastle Basketball Stadium where his father played professionally for the Newcastle Falcons in the late 1990s. The Tigers completed their five-game Australian tour with a 3–2 record, and over the five games, Simmons averaged 20 points and nine rebounds per game to lead the team in all major statistical categories. Upon returning to the United States, Simmons was featured on the Blue Ribbon College Basketball Yearbook 35th-anniversary cover, was named the SEC's Preseason Player of the Year , and earned Associated Press preseason All-America team honours. His Preseason Player of the Year honour made him just the second freshman to earn the award, joining Kentucky's Julius Randle in 2013, and his All-America team honour made him just the fourth freshman to be honoured on the preseason team. On 13 November 2015, Simmons made his college debut in LSU's season opener, recording a double-double with 11 points and 13 rebounds as a starter in a win over McNeese State. He helped LSU start the season 3–0 before recording 21 points, 20 rebounds, 7 assists , and 2 steals in a loss to Marquette on 23 November. On 2 December, he helped LSU break a three-game losing streak by recording 43 points, 14 rebounds, 7 assists, 5 steals, and 3 blocks in a 119–108 win over North Florida. His 43 points were the most for a Tigers player since Shaquille O'Neal had 43 against Northern Arizona on 28 December 1991. After recording 14 points and 10 rebounds in a win over Kentucky on 5 January 2016, Simmons was dubbed the best all-round player since LeBron James by NBA Hall of Famer Magic Johnson. On  11 February, he was named to the 35-man midseason watchlist for the Naismith Trophy. Nine days later, Simmons came off the bench for the first time after being removed from LSU's starting line-up for their game against Tennessee due to academic reasons. Following the conclusion of the regular season, Simmons was named first-team All-Southeastern Conference and the league's Freshman of the Year on the 2016 Coaches SEC voting. He was also named to the eight-player All-SEC Freshman team. The team's regular season was largely regarded as a disappointment. After ranking No . 21 in the preseason AP Top 25 vote, LSU finished the regular season with an 18–13 record, including 11–7 in SEC play. As the fourth seed in the 2016 SEC Tournament, Simmons helped LSU (18–13) defeat Tennessee in the quarter-finals to move on to the semi-finals where they faced first-seeded Texas A&M. LSU bowed out of the tournament with a demoralising 71–38 loss to the Aggies, as Simmons was unsuccessful in leading the Tigers to an NCAA tournament berth. Simmons completed the 2015–16 season having played in 33 games with 32 starts. He led the team in  all major statistical categories except three-point and free throw shooting, finishing with averages of 19.2 points, 11.8 rebounds, 4.8 assists, 2.0 steals, and 0.8 blocks in 34.9 minutes per game while shooting 56.0 per cent from the field, 1-of-3 (.333) from three-point range, and 67.0 per cent from the free throw line. In the SEC, he ranked fourth in points, first in rebounds, third in field goal percentage, fifth in assists, and second in steals. Following the announcement of the NCAA tournament field, with LSU failing to earn a bid, Tigers head coach Johnny Jones announced that  the team would not play in any postseason tournament. On 21 March 2016, Simmons declared for the 2016 NBA draft, forgoing his final three years of college eligibility. He withdrew from school at the conclusion of the season with plans to move immediately to Phoenix, Arizona in advance of the NBA draft. He also signed with American sports agency Klutch Sports, which is primarily owned by Rich Paul. Professional career. Philadelphia 76ers (2016–2022). 2016–17 season: Draft year injury. In the week leading up to the 2016 NBA draft, Simmons' attitude and character were questioned by a number of NBA media  analysts. Philadelphia 76ers head coach Brett Brown, former Australian national team coach and a friend of the Simmons family, repudiated the claims being made and was content with Simmons' pre-draft behaviour. On 23 June, he was selected by Brown and the 76ers with the number one overall pick in the 2016 draft, becoming the third Melbourne-born number one overall pick in 11 years (Andrew Bogut in 2005 and Kyrie Irving in 2011). He was also the first college player in the modern era to be selected with the first overall pick despite never playing in the NCAA Tournament . On 3 July 2016, Simmons signed his rookie scale contract with the 76ers and joined the team for the 2016 NBA Summer League. While he shot the ball poorly during his first three Summer League games, Simmons was praised for his court awareness and passing ability for a big man. He went on to be named in the All-Las Vegas Summer League First Team, and in six Summer League games, he averaged 10.8 points, 7.7 rebounds, and 5.5 assists per game. On 30 September 2016, Simmons rolled his right ankle during the 76ers' final training camp scrimmage. After receiving  an X-ray and MRI of the foot and ankle, it was determined that Simmons had suffered a fracture of the fifth metatarsal bone of his right foot and was estimated to miss three to four months. On 24 February 2017, he was ruled out for the entire 2016–17 NBA season after tests revealed that his broken right foot had not fully healed. 2017–18 season: Rookie season. Some pundits doubted his strength, fitness, and scoring prowess after a full season on the sidelines, with only an outside chance for Rookie of the Year. In his NBA debut on 18 October  2017, Simmons had 18 points and 10 rebounds in a 120–115 season-opening loss to the Washington Wizards. In his third game, on 21 October, Simmons recorded 18 points, 10 rebounds, and eight assists in a 128–94 loss to the Toronto Raptors, joining Oscar Robertson as the only players ever to post 10-plus points, 10-plus rebounds, and 5-plus assists in their first three NBA games. In his fourth game, on 23 October, Simmons recorded his first career triple-double with 21 points, 12 rebounds, and 10 assists in a 97–86 win over the Detroit Pistons, becoming the  third rookie after Robertson (1960) and Art Williams (1967) to record a triple-double in his first four games. He went on to become the only player in NBA history to begin a season with at least 170 points, 100 rebounds, and 80 assists in his team's first 10 games. On 29 November, he had 31 points and a career-high 18 rebounds in a 118–113 win over the Wizards. On 22 February, he scored a career-high 32 points, making two free throws with 5.6 seconds left to complete Philadelphia's rally from five points down in the  final minute as the 76ers beat the Chicago Bulls 116–115. On 15 March against the New York Knicks, Simmons recorded his second consecutive triple-double and joined Robertson and Magic Johnson as the third rookie in NBA history to reach 1,000 points, 500 rebounds, and 500 assists. His triple-double against the Knicks was his eighth of the season, thus entering second place for most triple-doubles in a rookie season, trailing only Robertson (26). On 19 March against the Charlotte Hornets, Simmons recorded 11 points, 12 rebounds, and 15 assists, and he became the third rookie to have 0  turnovers in a triple-double game. On 24 March, he recorded his 10th triple-double of the season with 15 points, 12 rebounds, and 13 assists in a 120–108 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves. On 26 March, he had 11 assists in a 123–104 win over the Denver Nuggets, topping Allen Iverson (567) to set the team rookie record for assists. On 6 April, he had 27 points, 15 rebounds, and 13 assists in a 132–130 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers, leading the 76ers to their 13th straight win. He was subsequently named Eastern Conference Player of the Week for  games played Monday 2 April to Sunday 8 April. In the 76ers' penultimate game of the regular season on 10 April, the 76ers set a franchise record with their 15th consecutive victory following a 121–113 win over the Atlanta Hawks, with Simmons recording 13 points, 10 rebounds, and six assists. The 76ers finished the regular season with a 16th straight win to earn the Eastern Conference's No. 3 seed in the playoffs. Their record of 52–30 set the best team mark since 2001, when they went 56–26. At the conclusion of the regular season, Simmons was named the Eastern  Conference Rookie of the Month for games played in March and April, earning the award for the third consecutive month and the fourth time overall. In his NBA playoff debut in game 1 of the 76ers' first-round playoff series against the Miami Heat, Simmons had 17 points, 14 assists, and nine rebounds in a 130–103 win. In game 4, Simmons helped the 76ers take a 3–1 lead in the series with 17 points, 13 rebounds, and 10 assists in a 106–102 win. He became the first rookie since Magic Johnson in 1980 to have a playoff triple-double, and  became the fifth rookie with a triple-double in the playoffs, joining Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Jerry Lucas and Tom Gola. Simmons helped the 76ers move on to the second round of the playoffs with a 4–1 defeat of the Heat, as he recorded 14 points and 10 rebounds in a 104–91 win in game 5. The 76ers went on to lose in five games to the Boston Celtics in the second round, with Simmons recording 18 points, eight rebounds, and six assists in a 114–112 loss in game 5. At the season's end, Simmons was named the NBA  Rookie of the Year and earned NBA All-Rookie First Team honours. 2018–19 season: First All-Star selection. In September 2018, Simmons announced that during the off-season he began working to improve his shooting with his brother Liam Tribe-Simmons, former assistant coach for University of California, Riverside Highlanders men's basketball team and Southwest Baptist Bearcats men's basketball team, and would continue to do so for the remainder of the season. In the 76ers' season opener on 16 October 2018, Simmons recorded 19 points, 15 rebounds, and eight assists in a 105–87 loss to the Boston Celtics . Two days later, he had a triple-double with 13 points, 13 rebounds, and 11 assists in a 127–108 win over the Chicago Bulls. He reached his 13th career triple-double with 2:34 left in the third and became the first Sixer to ever get one in a home opener. On 2 January, he scored 29 points in a 132–127 win over the Phoenix Suns. On 5 January, he recorded his sixth triple-double of the season with 20 points, 14 rebounds, and 11 assists in a 106–100 win over the Dallas Mavericks. On 11 January, he had 23 points , 15 assists, and 10 rebounds in a 123–121 loss to the Atlanta Hawks. Two days later, he had 20 points, 22 rebounds, and nine assists in a 108–105 win over the New York Knicks. On 15 January, with 20 points, 11 rebounds, and 9 assists against the Minnesota Timberwolves, Simmons became the second fastest player in NBA history to reach 2,000 points, 1,000 rebounds, and 1,000 assists, trailing only Oscar Robertson. Simmons reached this milestone in 125 games, which is 9 games faster than Magic Johnson and 33 games faster than LeBron James. On 23 January, he had 21 points , 15 assists, and 10 rebounds in a 122–120 win over the San Antonio Spurs. On 31 January, he received his first All-Star selection as an Eastern Conference reserve, becoming the first Australian to receive the honour. On 28 February, he recorded his ninth triple-double of the season with 11 points, 13 rebounds, and 11 assists in a 108–104 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder. Two days later, he had 25 points, 15 rebounds, and 11 assists in a 120–117 loss to the Golden State Warriors. In game two of the 76ers' first-round playoff series against the Brooklyn  Nets, Simmons had his second career postseason triple-double with 18 points, 12 assists, and 10 rebounds to lead Philadelphia to a 145–123 win. In game three of the series, Simmons scored a postseason career-high 31 points on 11-of-13 shooting in a 131–115 win over the Nets, putting the 76ers up 2–1 in the series. 2019–20 season: All-Star, All-NBA, and All-Defensive selections. On 23 October 2019, in the 2019–20 NBA season opener against divisional rivals the Boston Celtics, Simmons scored 24 points on 68 per cent shooting and recorded nine assist and eight rebounds in  a 107–93 win. On 22 November, Simmons recorded his first triple-double of the season and his 24th of his career after recording 10 points, 10 rebounds, and 13 assists in a 115–104 win over the San Antonio Spurs. On 7 December, Simmons scored a career-high 34 points, while making 12 out of 14 shots in a 141–94 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers, which included his second NBA career three-pointer. On 23 December, Simmons recorded yet another triple-double this time completing the feat while recording a career high 17 assists in a win over the Detroit Pistons . On 20 January 2020, Simmons scored 34 points and recorded 12 assists and 12 rebounds in a 117–111 win over the Brooklyn Nets. On 30 January, it was announced Simmons had been awarded with his second All-Star appearance. Simmons was drafted by Team LeBron and went on to score 17 points, 5 assists, and 6 rebounds in a Team LeBron win. In a 22 February game against the Milwaukee Bucks, Simmons left the game in the first quarter with an apparent lower back injury. It was revealed Simmons had a nerve impingement in his lower back and the team  listed him as "out for an extended period of time". Simmons was sidelined until the NBA returned after pausing play due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Simmons returned to play on 1 August 2020 during the NBA Bubble where he scored 19 points along with 13 rebounds and 5 rebounds in a loss to the Indiana Pacers. Simmons sat out the playoffs due to a knee injury, and the 76ers were eliminated 4–0 by the Boston Celtics. At the end of the season, Simmons was the 2020 NBA steals leader, and he was named to the All-NBA Third Team and  the NBA All-Defensive First team. 2020–21 season: All-Star and All-Defensive selections. On 15 February 2021, Simmons recorded a double-double with a career-high 42 points and 12 assists in a 134–123 loss to the Utah Jazz. Simmons finished the season averaging 14.3 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 6.9 assists per game. During the playoffs, Simmons struggled at the free-throw line and became the worst free-throw shooter in postseason history with at least 67 attempts (34.2 per cent), surpassing both Wilt Chamberlain (38 per cent) and Shaquille O'Neal (37.4 per cent). Following a Game 7 loss  in the Eastern Conference semifinals against the Atlanta Hawks, Simmons came under heavy scrutiny due to his inability to shoot and lack of aggressiveness on offense. Simmons did not attempt a single shot in the final quarter in five out of the seven games, which many attributed to his lack of confidence in shooting free throws. Simmons averaged 9.9 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 8.6 assists per game and shot 60 per cent from the field and 33 per cent (15-for-45) from the free throw line against the Hawks. 2021–22 season: 76ers holdout. After the 76ers' Game 7 loss in  the 2021 Eastern Conference Semifinals, Joel Embiid cited Simmons' decision to pass up an open dunk as the turning point in the game. A reporter asked 76ers coach Doc Rivers if Simmons could be a point guard on a championship team, to which Rivers responded: "I don't even know how to answer that right now." In response to this and other factors, Simmons, despite having four years left on his contract, decided in August 2021 that he no longer wanted to be a member of the team. He declared his intentions to be traded, and noted that he was  willing to miss training camp to enforce his trade demand. Simmons and company had also indicated that his play did not mesh effectively with that of Embiid and that their time as teammates had run its course. Embiid's public comments in response included calling Simmons' holdout and trade demands "borderline ... disrespectful" to the team, and that team management had built rosters around Simmons. Simmons, as he had indicated, missed training camp. He also did not play in the preseason and even placed his Philadelphia home on the market for $3.1 million. His absence led to the 76ers organization  withholding and putting in escrow $8.25 million that would have otherwise been owed to him on October 1, signifying over a quarter of the $31.59 million owed to him for the 2021–22 season. Simmons returned to the team on 11 October 2021. On 19 October, Simmons was thrown out of practice by Rivers due to declining several times to substitute into a drill and was suspended by the 76ers for one game, the team's season-opener against the New Orleans Pelicans, due to conduct detrimental to the team. Simmons had previously been fined $1.4 million due  to his absence from four preseason games, missed practices, on-court workouts, and meetings. After Simmons told the 76ers his absence was due to a mental health issue, team officials stopped fining him, but later resumed the fines after he continued to refuse to cooperate with them. Due to the repeated fines for missed games, Simmons became the most-fined player in NBA history, with reports suggesting he had surpassed $10 million by the end of 2021. In January 2022, the 76ers reportedly had limited their fining of Simmons in response to him attending team meetings and counseling sessions , but continued to dock him for missed games. Brooklyn Nets (2022–present). On 10 February 2022, Simmons was traded, along with Andre Drummond, Seth Curry, and two future first-round picks, to the Brooklyn Nets in exchange for James Harden and Paul Millsap. On 21 March, Simmons was diagnosed with a herniated disk in his back. On 4 April, Nets head coach Steve Nash ruled out Simmons for the remainder of the regular season and the play-in tournament. On 21 April, Simmons announced his season debut in Game 4 against the Boston Celtics during the first round of the  playoffs. On 24 April, despite the Nets facing a sweep against the Celtics, the Nets announced Simmons would not play in Game 4 due to back soreness. National team career. Junior national team. Simmons represented Australia at the 2012 FIBA Under-17 World Championship at age 15, helping the team win a silver medal. Simmons' tournament highlights included a 26-point, 10-rebound, 5-steal outing against the Czech Republic. A year later, after participating in the Australian Boomers camp ahead of the Sino-Australia Challenge, Simmons made his senior debut for Australia in the 2013 FIBA Oceania Championship against New  Zealand. He subsequently scored four total points in the two-game series and was a part of the gold medal-winning Australian team. Senior national team. In July 2014, Simmons was added to the Boomers extended squad for the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup; however, he was later cut from the squad as he did not make the final 12-man roster. In August 2015, Simmons signaled his intentions to represent Australia at the 2016 Summer Olympics and said he was aiming to win a medal. In April 2016, Simmons decided to not join the Boomers for the Rio Olympics  in order to concentrate on preparing for his rookie season in the NBA. On 15 May 2019, Simmons confirmed he would represent Australia in the 2019 FIBA World Cup and multiple exhibition games against Canada and the United States. In July 2019, Simmons announced that he would not play for the Australian national team in 2019, citing "professional obligations".. In October 2017, Simmons made clear his intentions to represent Australia at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo; however, he withdrew from the Australia Olympic squad in order to focus on improving his shooting skills for the 2021–22 NBA season. Personal  life. In the summer of 2018, Simmons' brother Liam resigned his position as assistant coach at the University of California, Riverside, to work with Simmons on improving his shooting game. The decision to hire his brother as his shooting coach was not without controversy or criticism. His sister Emily, a former member of the Washington State University women's rowing team, who has worked for Klutch Sports since 2014, is married to former NFL player Michael Bush. His godfather, David Patrick, was an assistant coach at LSU and was a part of his sole season there and is currently the  head coach at UC Riverside. A cousin of Simmons, who had attended the 2016 NBA draft, was killed in a hit-and-run on 25 June 2016 in New Jersey. In November 2016, Simmons was featured in the Showtime documentary film "One & Done", providing an insight into his time as a one-and-done college player, as well as exploring his and his family's thoughts on the NCAA and the NBA's "one and done" rule. On 7 June 2016, Simmons signed an endorsement deal with Nike. Simmons is a supporter of the Essendon Football Club, an Australian rules  football team in the Australian Football League. On 3 October 2020, Simmons announced his endorsement for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris for the 2020 United States presidential election. Over the 2021 Christmas holiday, Simmons reportedly became engaged to British television personality Maya Jama.