Colin Cowherd has delivered some takes that have aged terribly over the years, and arguably his worst one resurfaced recently. Back in 2018, Cowherd bizarrely claimed on The Herd that the NBA no longer needs LeBron James because Ben Simmons had well and truly arrived.
“You know I love LeBron, I’ve talked about him incessantly for a decade,” Cowherd said. “I still think he is absolutely remarkable but for the first time in 10 to 12 years, I look at the NBA, which I’ve watched for four decades, and I say this now with Ben Simmons, ‘Hey LeBron, we are good, bro. You can go. You don’t have to. You can hang around. Still great, but you can go. We’re all good here.'”
“When I watch Ben Simmons play, it is just a gut feeling, that is something between LeBron and Magic,” Cowherd added.
These comments from Cowherd seemed a bit much at the time and they come across as downright ridiculous now, with how Simmons’ career has panned out. He has become somewhat of an afterthought while LeBron remains one of the faces of the league. In case you’re wondering what was the context behind Cowherd’s comments, he made them after their first playoff games in 2018.
LeBron and the Cleveland Cavaliers had gotten blown out 98-80 by the Indiana Pacers in Game 1 of their first round series. James had put up 24 points, 10 rebounds, 12 assists, 1 steal, and 1 block in the contest, but it certainly wasn’t one of his better outings.
Simmons, meanwhile, had helped the 76ers blow out the Miami Heat 130-103 on his playoff debut. The Australian recorded 17 points, 9 rebounds, 14 assists, and 2 steals in the game and it was unquestionably an impressive first outing.
Still, it was just one game and Cowherd clearly got carried away there. Having been part of the media for as long as he had been, he should have known better than to dish out a take like that so soon.
Simmons and the 76ers would beat the Heat in five games but then lost to the Boston Celtics in the Conference Semifinals in five. LeBron and the Cavaliers, on the other hand, made it to the NBA Finals by beating the Celtics in seven games in the Conference Finals.
James played exceptionally well in that playoff run and remains a dominant force on the court all these years later too. His legend has only grown with time and he is still one of the biggest draws, so the NBA certainly doesn’t want him to go away anytime soon.
Simmons, meanwhile, is anything but dominant now. He has become a shell of the player he once was and his days in the NBA seem numbered at this point.
Simmons averaged just 6.1 points, 7.9 rebounds, 5.7 assists, 0.8 steals, and 0.6 blocks per game for the Brooklyn Nets in 2023-24. He only managed to play in 15 games too due to injuries and is now heading into the final year of his contract.
If Simmons fails to impress on the court in 2024-25 or once again spends a big chunk of the campaign on the sidelines, I think there’s a good chance no team will give him a deal when he hits free agency. If that does happen, it would be quite ironic that the man Cowherd thought would replace LeBron, would be out of the NBA before him.
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