It is a hard pill to swallow when you have to accept that two great players are not compatible! That is the problem the Philadelphia 76ers find themselves in when it comes to Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid.
"Trust the Process" was the mantra in Philly for a long time as they were going through their rebuilding phase. The organization was accused of tanking on purpose to ensure themselves a top three pick in every draft they entered during that period of time when they were bad. Other organizations had such an issue with it that Adam Silver had to institute a new lottery selection method to promote teams to compete, because no longer did having a bad record ensure you a top pick in the draft.
However, for Philadelphia it allowed them years and years of shooting for the stars in the draft until they were able to find two in Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid. The only problem is that these two young stars games do not compliment one another at all.
Joel Embiid is a big time scorer on the post and the mid-range. He is not a stretch 5, he is what today's true big man should be, dominant from 20 feet and in. To his credit though Joel has developed a respectable shot from outside the arc to make defenders have to defend him from 30 feet out, however that is not his strength. Slide over a seat to his teammate Ben Simmons and you have a similar player in that his biggest strength is playing on the inside, but is completely invaluable out on the perimeter on the offensive side of the ball.
Ben Simmons lack of a perimeter game makes playing him and Joel together ineffective. It is only when Joel has his shot falling from the outside that allows them to both be on the floor together. However, with the body and skill that Embiid has it would be massively underutilizing him as just a stretch big, thus creating the issue that coach Brett Brown has to fix.
The issue is that Ben Simmons refuses to have confidence in his shooting. Ben Simmons is being asked, begged, and promoted to shoot from the outside just to make defenses play him honestly and allow more space on the floor for his other teammates, but he is not doing that. Now the time has come for Brett Brown to ask either Ben or Embiid to be the star of the second unit if the 76ers plan on being able to make this team coexist with both players. Brett Brown has to develop separate lineups that will enhance his two stars strengths while covering their weaknesses.
My gut tells me that neither Ben or Joel would be okay with that idea, which really leads to the point of this article. Philadelphia needs to decide which of their two stars they will build around and trade the other while their stock is high! The Philadelphia 76ers will not be able to maximize their potential with Joel and Ben on the floor together because their games are non-complimentary. I know it would be hard for the organization and fans to see one of their young stars go because you don't just find talent like them everywhere but they don't work and for the sake of being the best team possible you have to make tough decisions.
Philadelphia fans deserve a true shot at a championship and this team as constructed will leave them teased! It will give them inevitable hope only to be let down over and over again. So what will Philly do? Not sure, but if they were asking for advice, kill the anxiety of trying to see if Ben and Joel can work and just accept that divorces are not always the worst thing!
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