After spending the initial years of his career with the Philadelphia 76ers, Ben Simmons finally decided to move on in his career at the beginning of the 2021-22 NBA season. He made it abundantly clear that he didn’t want to continue with the franchise and decided not to play even a single game.
Well, after months of struggle, Simmons finally got his wish fulfilled as he was traded to the Brooklyn Nets. In place of Ben, the 76ers got James Harden and so far it has been working well for the franchise.
Harden has adjusted quite well for the 76ers initially and after Simmons’ departure, the Sixers have found a new star in Tyrese Maxey. Maxey has been playing incredibly well and has gelled well with Harden and Joel Embiid.
So much so that Maxey has already surpassed Ben Simmons’ highest points per game average. Thanks to Redditor u/DownFromHere who brought this stat to our attention. According to the Reddit post, Maxey is currently averaging 17.6 points per game.
On the contrary, Simmons’ highest PPG average came back in his sophomore season, where he recorded 16.9 points per game. Although Simmons’ best skill was not his scoring, it is still good news for 76ers fans.
With Simmons yet to make his debut for the Brooklyn Nets and only around two months of the regular season left, the 25-year-old can still break his previous PPG record. However, the sample size is quite small, so it will not be a correct evaluation of Ben’s value for the Nets.
Moreover, the Nets also have the superstar duo of Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant. So Simmons’ primary job for the Nets will be to be a defensive force and a playmaker for the team.
As of now, it certainly seems like the 76ers won the trade. But after Simmons’ debut with the Nets, we will get a much better idea of who won the trade.
