This year, the debate between Brandon Ingram and Ben Simmons for who will be the first pick in the NBA Draft looks as compelling, or even more so, than the debate between Karl-Anthony Towns and Jahlil Okafor a year ago.
For much of the season, Simmons did little to suggest that there was anyone else worthy of selecting first overall in June’s NBA Draft. That’s what shooting 56-percent from the field, scoring 19.2 points, grabbing 11.8 rebounds, and dishing out 4.8 assists per game will do for a player. In fact, Simmons failed to score in double-figures just once this season, a loss against North Carolina State where he still had 14 rebounds, 10 assists, three blocks, and three steals. Without scoring the ball–he finished with just four points–Simmons completely dominated the game.
But his inability to get LSU to be competitive over the course of the season, as the Tigers completely missed out on the NCAA Tournament and declined any postseason play, had people wondering if all of his efforts truly added up to someone being a great player, or just a stat sheet stuffer.
On the other side, you have Ingram. The 6’9” wing was often dominant for Duke as a freshman, scoring 17.3 points and grabbing 6.8 rebounds per game, while helping the Blue Devils to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament. In Duke’s three tournament games, Ingram averaged 23 points and 6.3 rebounds per game.
Ingram’s offensive skill set and long frame that still hasn’t been truly developed has convinced teams that he’s the direction to go with the top pick, an option that would give the Philadelphia 76ers a true go-to scorer on the perimeter. But how can we just forget about Simmons and his overall game, a game that affects both ends of the court far more than Ingram does? That’s the question Philadelphia will have to answer should they go with the Duke product.
Who will be the first pick in the NBA Draft? We’re getting closer to seeing, but the debate is a long ways from being over.
