Ben Simmons and the Golden State Warriors have been linked in various trade rumors for quite some time, and it’s easy to see why. Having an amazing playmaker like Ben Simmons would be great when you have two all-time great shooters like Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson. Their shooting would in turn help space the floor for Ben Simmons, allowing him to have an easier time getting to the rim.
While a lot of people have suggested that Simmons would be perfect in Golden State, it seems as though the Warriors governor Joe Lacob has some doubts about Ben Simmons on the team. In a recent interview with Rusty Simmons of the San Francisco Chronicle, Lacob revealed that Simmons wouldn’t necessarily be a good fit on the team.
In an interview with The Chronicle on Tuesday, Warriors owner Joe Lacob said in reference to a “Defensive Player of the Year candidate in Philadelphia” while being careful to not get fined for tampering: “I think we are always looking at everything to see if we can improve our team. We would always look.”
But NBA sources say the Philadelphia asking price has been exorbitant.
“In some ways, it doesn’t really fit what we’re doing. He makes a lot of money. And, can he finish games? I don’t know,” Lacob said. “He’s very talented. The problem is: We have Draymond. Draymond and him are very similar in the sense that neither one really shoots and they do a lot of the playmaking. That’s one issue. The salary structure is another.
It seems as though Lacob recognizes that Ben Simmons is still a very good player. But Lacob’s reservations about Ben Simmons seem to be centered around him having an overlap in his skillset with Draymond Green, as well as some concerns about Simmons’ performances in the clutch.
It remains to be seen which team will be the one that ends up trading for Ben Simmons. However, from what Joe Lacob has expressed, it seems as though it probably won’t be the Warriors.
