Ben Simmons’ recent appearance at an offseason workout in Port Melbourne alongside several Boomers players was more than enough to reignite an old question: would we finally see him in the green and gold again?
Simmons confirmed his intention to play for Australia to Trent Kniese of 9News Melbourne. “… That's why I'm here. It's a long way to fly just to not do it.”
If he does, it may require a significant change in role. Australia no longer needs Simmons to be its primary ball handler, with Josh Giddey and Dyson Daniels now established at the heart of the Boomers’ backcourt.
Simmons is an enigma that has puzzled basketball fans in the last five years. The three-time NBA All-Star, as recently as 2021, saw his career take a precipitous decline after a series of back injuries and disagreements with the Philadelphia 76ers, the club that drafted him. This culminated in a year-plus absence from the hardwood, as Simmons has not played professionally for sixteen months now. In his time off, the 30 year old has focused on making a full recovery from prior injuries, while pursuing other interests - such as sport fishing.
After stepping out of the spotlight, few would have expected Simmons to re-emerge amongst the setup of the Australian Boomers.
Credit: FIBA
He was involved with the national team in the early 2010s, winning a silver medal at the 2012 FIBA Under-17 World Championship, before making his senior Boomers debut a year later at just 17.
After that however, began a long absence from the green and gold. Simmons chose not to suit up for the Emus at the 2013 & 2015 FIBA Under-19 World Championship events, while in the midst of an illustrious high school basketball career. He then declined a Boomers opportunity at the 2016 Olympics after being drafted by the Philadelphia 76ers with the first overall pick, choosing to focus on his training.
Simmons surprisingly resurfaced in 2019, verbally declaring his commitment to the Boomers ahead of the 2019 FIBA World Cup, but later pulled out after the 76ers suffered an early playoff exit against Toronto. Another absence followed at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, and Boomers fans would have begun to wonder if Simmons would ever wear the green and gold again. By the time the 2024 Paris Olympics came around, the hype around Simmons’ Boomers return had begun to dwindle, and he was ruled out due to an ongoing lower back issue.
So when Simmons was sighted at that unofficial Boomers scrimmage at CourtSide Melbourne, there were naturally going to be rumblings about a potential comeback - not just to the basketball court, but to the Australian national team. But at this point in his career, there’s a very real possibility that the opportunity has passed Simmons by.
Ever since his junior career, Simmons hasn’t always had the smoothest relationship with Australian basketball, if reports are to be believed. Simmons was recruited by the Australian Institute of Sport’s famed basketball program in 2012, but only ended up staying for a couple of months, before returning to Box Hill High School (in Victoria) and ultimately going on to play high school basketball in the USA.
“I wasn’t aware that he would leave early and play high school ball [in the USA],” former AIS basketball head coach Ian Stacker told the Pick and Roll, in 2019. “Certainly the discussions I had with Dave [Simmons] were more around him coming to the institute [AIS], and either going into college, or going into the NBL from the institute…”
“He only stayed for a couple of months I think, and the feedback from Dave was that Ben was homesick, which is why he came back to Melbourne. But then not long after that, he moved to America, to go to high school in America.”
Simmons wasn’t the first player to leave the AIS early, and certainly not the last. But before he was drafted by Philadelphia, an explosive report from esteemed draft analysts Jonathan Givony and Mike Schmitz appeared to shed light on his standing within the Australian basketball setup.
“The concerns about Simmons’ character didn’t magically appear the moment he arrived [in college],” Givony and Schmitz wrote. “Those sentiments also have been expressed by members of the Australian national team who have spent time with him at the junior and senior levels.
“Australian players and coaches who have been around him don’t speak about him in flattering terms, calling him ‘the Yank’ to highlight how different he is compared with most of the players from that country, and perhaps highlight how much moving to the United States at a young age and immersing himself in the AAU world has shaped him.
“Those who know him best say he needs things to revolve around him on and off the court and that he’s often been close-minded to coaching or instruction.”
Expanding on that final quote, a 2019 article in the Daily Telegraph suggested that Simmons may have had concerns around the resources available in the Boomers camp.
“News Corp Australia understands the Boomers’ NBA players are frustrated that some of their performance demands to Basketball Australia have been knocked back due to budgetary reasons,” Matt Logue wrote. “These requests include a personal team chef instead of eating at hotels, plus extra recovery and performance staff.”
Several quotes from Boomers legend Patty Mills supported this notion.
“There are legitimate concerns that he [Ben] has and rightfully so,” Mills said. “They’re concerns that we all have had for some time, and actually had to deal with these concerns mid-tournament before.
“I guess in a very small way it is understandable, because they [Basketball Australia] have never had 11 or 12 NBA guys roll into camp. Half of us are NBA veterans.
“But Ben has mentioned that he wants to play for Australia and be a part of the team, so my personal stance to Basketball Australia is that this guy is an NBA All-Star right now and we need to do everything in our power to cater to these needs to make sure he is a part of our team.”
Simmons was groomed to be a primary ball handler since his junior days, while possessing a physique that you would typically expect from a power forward or centre. Quotes from Simmons’ former coach in Philadelphia, Brett Brown, suggest that his father “never permitted” coaches to pigeonhole him as a big man.
“I’m not surprised that his dad, who is a hell of a player and actually a hell of a coach, designed and groomed his son to have ball skills and not just assume that he’s big, and, yep, it’s fine if these junior coaches make you a four man or a center,” Brown told NBA.com in 2017.
“I have an evolving son who’s 13, and I’m a son of a coach, so you see people get positioned based on their height when they’re young,” Brown said. “And he [Dave] never permitted that. And so, he’s smart. From that perspective, it doesn’t surprise me. He gave Ben the skill package to be a modern-day NBA player.”
Why Simmons may have to step out of his comfort zone
If Ben Simmons was still an NBA All-Star at the peak of his powers, there would be little doubt about handing him the ball as Australia’s primary playmaker. Given the decline in his output over the past five years, and the rise of several contemporaries, he might have to embrace a grittier off-ball role than the one he’s played for most of his career.
Josh Giddey is a nightly triple-double threat in the NBA, while Dyson Daniels has emerged as a defensive juggernaut, making two All-Defensive teams while holding down a playmaking guard role in Atlanta. Others like Tyrese Proctor will emerge in the coming years, meaning Simmons may find himself on the outer if he cannot adapt to the situation.
This isn’t anything new for Simmons, as he occasionally played as a small ball big man during his time with the Brooklyn Nets. The growth of Nicolas Claxton perhaps stopped the Nets coaching staff from taking Simmons further down this path, but it’s certainly something that has been explored before. At 6’10 Simmons has the ability to defend all five positions, and is no slouch on the boards, averaging 7.4 rebounds throughout his NBA career. He doesn’t offer elite rim protection, but can compete with all varieties of big men - perimeter bigs, interior scorers and everything in between.
Simmons’ passing vision will always add value to the Boomers out of the post, but he won’t be the primary ball handler, at least while Josh Giddey is playing at this level. Aside from Jock Landale and potentially Duop Reath, the Boomers currently don’t have a big man playing regular NBA minutes, so positionally a power forward or centre role will be the most likely pathway for Simmons to make the team.
There are more NBA-level Aussie players than ever before. If Simmons can’t get back to the level that saw him log NBA minutes, he may face long odds to make a 12 man Boomers roster at a major tournament. History suggests that in the right environment, he may be amenable to accepting a non-preferred role. Former Crocs head coach Guy Molloy spoke to The Pick and Roll in 2019, and actually credited Simmons’ ability to mesh with the team in 2012, when Dante Exum was already entrenched as the primary ball handler.
“I do strongly believe that when you are representing a national team, it is servitude and it is sacrifice. You perform the role that you’re given to the best of your abilities,” Molloy said. “Ben was a fine kid to coach; there was no issue [regarding role or position]. We were a long way down a path with Dante as a point guard. [We said to Ben] ‘If you want to be in the team, this is where we’re going to look at playing you’. And Ben came in and did a job, and that was it.”
All in all, it remains to be seen as to whether Simmons can recapture some of the magic that led to an All-NBA selection. It’s encouraging to see him back on the court and to play alongside multiple Boomers, but to actually see him in the green and gold will be a different story.
Simmons will likely have to accept a big man role, and the team won’t be looking to him as the primary offensive creator or facilitator. For a player who was once the crown jewel of Aussie hoops, the time to lead the Boomers as a star point guard may have passed him by, but Simmons still has plenty to offer in the right role.