Hold on. Hear me out.
I know any Ben Simmons to the Raptors discussion has infuriated and perplexed most Raptor fans. It’s hard to “Trust in Masai” when the rumours of him wanting to trade for Simmons have seemed, at times this past summer, to be so prevalent. But there’s a method to the madness. Trading for Simmons isn’t nearly as insane as it might seem.
Before the draft, the Simmons to the Raptors rumours did seem to make more sense. The belief was that the Raptors were going to most likely draft Jalen Suggs and he, Fred VanVleet, Gary Trent Jr and OG Anunoby were good enough shooters to offset Simmons’ problematic lack of a jump shot. Simmons’ defence, especially his ability to switch and defend multiple positions, as well as his passing ability, made acquiring Simmons intriguing, at the very least.
Then the Raptors drafted Scottie Barnes, who duplicates a lot of the strengths and weaknesses of Simmons, and it seemed like all the Simmons to the Raptors talk disappeared. Then Toronto’s name resurfaced, and while the current price Philly is apparently asking is too high, there’s reason to think the Raptors would still like to add Simmons to the roster if they can get him for the right price.
And for most of the Raptor fanbase, this is the reaction:
There are two issues here. There is what a Ben Simmons trade would look like and his fit with Raptors. Let’s first discuss his fit.
TO FIT OR NOT TO FIT, THAT IS THE QUESTION
The obvious problem with Simmons is that he can’t shoot beyond ten feet (at least when he’s not in the off season). This is especially a problem if he were to share the floor with guys like Barnes, Precious Achiuwa, Khem Birch or even Pascal Siakam, who is the team’s best scorer but still struggles from the perimeter and actually takes more of his shots from inside the paint than Simmons’ teammate, Joel Embiid does. If Simmons and Embiid had trouble playing together, then there’s reason to think Simmons and Siakam would, as well.
And considering the Raptor’s offence relies so much on spacing the floor, Simmons inability to hit the jumper seems very likely to have a negative effect on the team’s half court offence, no matter who else is on the floor with him. One of the reasons the team saw such a decline from 2020 to 2021 is the loss of Marc Gasol and Serge Ibaka, both of whom could space the floor. This is why the team seemed to do so much better with Birch at centre over Aaron Baynes. Birch could actually step out and hit a jumper, something Baynes struggled to do on a consistent basis all season.
And while Simmons is a spectacular passer and ball handler, the Raptors already have VanVleet, Malachi Flynn to run the team, as well as Siakam, who took on more ball handling duties in the last couple of seasons, and Barnes, who supposedly has a future at the point guard position.
So on the surface, then, there really doesn’t seem to be a fit here.
But let’s look a bit closer.
LENGTH IS THE KEY WORD
It’s no secret that Masai is looking to build a mostly position-less team that can cause absolute havoc on the defensive end and run the other team off the court on the offensive end. And we’ve already seen a bit of that in the preseason, when, during a stretch in the second quarter, a 6’6 Justin Champagnie was the shortest player on the court for the Raptors and they gave the 76ers fits defensively and turned turnovers and missed shots into offence on the other end. The ability to switch on defense, contest a shot, grab a rebound and lead the break by multiple players on the Raptors roster (I counted five 6’8 players grab a rebound and then lead the break in their first preseason game) The Raptors might be now more equipped that any other team in the league to play this way. And most of them can grab a rebound and lead the break, so the Raptors have a good chance at leading the league in fast break points, like they did the season after they won the title.
Now imagine adding Simmons, who is probably the league’s best perimeter defender (he finished 2nd in Defensive Player of the Year voting this past season and made All Defensive First Team honours twice already) and one of the best players in transition. While his reputation has never been worse, he’s a much better player than people now see him. It was just six months ago that people were talking about him like this:
A CHANCE FOR REDEMPTION
Yes, he had a historically bad series against the Atlanta Hawks where his weaknesses were exposed, but he still possesses the same skills that made him a three-time All Star. Remember that VanVleet was having a horrible playoffs during the Raptor’s Championship run until they won the Philadelphia series on a fortuitous last second shot. He shot just .125 in that series and was rendered completely useless by the 76ers tall and rangy backcourt that included Simmons. Imagine if the Raptors had lost that game. VanVleet would have gone into the next season with that being forged in everyone’s memory. Instead, the Raptors won and VanVleet went on to redeem himself, even getting a Finals MVP vote.
The point is that we too often we give too much weight to the last memory we have of a player. Simmons is better than the player he was against Atlanta just as VanVleet is better than the player he was against Philadelphia. Does he have problems on the offensive end, including a free throw percentage that causes him to avoid getting fouled late in the game? Absolutely. And that’s a valid concern. But on a team where he isn’t required to be the main ball handler, this wouldn’t be as much of a problem it is in Philadelphia.
Coach Nick Nurse would definitely have to adjust the team’s offence to the lack of outside shooting, but Nurse is renowned for his creativity and ability to make adjustments. If any coach could come up with a system to bring out the best in Simmons, it’s Nurse. 76ers coach, Doc Rivers, is a very good coach with a title under his belt, but he’s been criticized repeatedly for his unwillingness or inability to make adjustments, especially in the playoffs (where he’s lost more series after being up 3-1 than any other coach in history). Creativity is not his strength, and it was apparent that Rivers often didn’t know how to use Simmons effectively, especially in the playoffs.
YOU’RE NOT A LION. YOU’RE AN EAGLE. SO GO BE AN EAGLE.
Moving him to another position, other than point guard, might help Simmons, or even into a system where positions are largely irrelevant and ball handling duties are shared amongst several players. A team like, say, the Toronto Raptors.
Simmons has actually excelled previously in a role other than point guard. Against Utah, when he played centre in place of an injured Embiid, Simmons scored a career high 42 points and was a rebound away from a triple double. Coach Nick, from Bball Breakdown discusses this at length in this video…
REPS, REPS AND MORE REPS
While Simmons lack of an outside shot would be a challenge for Coach Nurse and the Raptors, Simmons has shown he can actually shoot in off season highlight clips. He’s never going to be Steph Curry, or even Serge Ibaka, but I could envision him becoming Jonas Valanciunas-like from the perimeter. Not great, but good enough to keep defenders honest and space the floor a little.
And if there’s one organization that has shown an ability to improve a player’s shooting it’s the Raptors. Norm Powell went from a prospect with a shaky jump shot to became one of the better three point shooters in the league. Siakam dipped last season, but is still much improved over when he came into the league. No one is expecting Simmons to ever become a good three point shooter, but if he can display even some of the apparent shooting ability he’s shown every offseason, then he can be FAR more effective than he was in the Atlanta series.
So a combination of allowing Simmons to play more off ball, running an offence that actually can take advantage of his strengths and slightly improved shooting could unlock All NBA Ben Simmons and give the Raptors a true superstar. Or at the very least, give them another player who can play and defend every position on the court, as well as someone who can run the offence from the high post like Marc Gasol did.
WHEN THEY ZIG, WE ZAG
One of the most interesting things about the Raptors new direction, and trading for Simmons would only enhance this, is that the current trend seems to be to pack your team with as much offensive firepower as possible, giving defense a backseat. Masai and the Raptors, on the other hand, seem to be going the other way, focusing on adding defensive players and allowing scoring to be a by-product of the defense. It’s not that the Raptors don’t have players who can score (Siakam, Trent Jr, VanVleet, Anunoby and even Boucher are all good, if not elite scorers), but they won’t be simply outscoring their opponent on a nightly basis, like teams such as the Nets, Bulls and Nuggets.
As we saw in the preseason game against the Sixers, sending out a team of long, switchable players who can all defend, rebound and bring up the ball can certainly hide a lot of limitations on offence, just as having three 25+ ppg scorers on your team can hide defensive limitations.
It’s certainly an interesting strategy, especially considering the Raptors don’t have, and at this point don’t seem to be able to acquire, the elite scorer they lack. And with everyone else trying to pack their team with them,
THE COST OF DOING BUSINESS
Trading for Simmons while his value is at its lowest would better position the Raptors for another title run, and it’s what Masai did with Kawhi. The question is, what would the Raptors have to give up.
While Raptor fans might be loathe to admit it, a package of OG and VanVleet is actually probably a fair trade for a player of Simmons’ calibre (provided he returns to All NBA level) but I still don’t see that happening. Keeping Anunoby seems like a priority for the Raptors, and the whole point to trading for Simmons is to get more players like Anunoby, who can play and defend multiple positions. Plus, Anunoby’s just turned 24, so he’s still a few years away from his prime.
The player that makes the most sense to trade Simmons for is Siakam, for several reasons. First, he’s the player on the team whose as close to Simmons level as anyone. He’s made an All NBA team, like Simmons, and he might be close enough in value the Raptors don’t have to give up multiple valuable pieces.
Secondly, as discussed earlier, having Simmons and Siakam on the floor together could cause many of the same problems that occurred in Philadelphia when Simmons had to play with Embiid. Siakam gets the vast majority of his points in the paint, and having Simmons (as well as Barnes) not able to space it as much as is needed for Siakam to fully operate, then moving him for Simmons does make a lot of sense.
The problem is that Philadelphia doesn’t need another big who will get in the way of Embiid, so another team would have to be brought in, which obviously complicates things. That said, a deal like this does make sense for all teams:
Toronto gets Simmons, Philadelphia gets Hayward, a All Star level player who fits in perfectly positionally and skill-wise, as well as Rozier, a very good defensive point guard who can space actually score. Charlotte gets Siakam, whose rim running would go beautifully with LeMelo Ball’s game and give the team some much needed inside scoring. Milton would give them more wing scoring and Green a veteran presence.
This is probably the best deal the Sixers would be able to get, at this point. They get immediate veteran help and perfect players to surround Embiid with.
ON SECOND THOUGHT
The reason NOT to trade Siakam is a) because he’s the team’s best scorer on a team that appears to be lacking scoring and b) he’s the type of player the Raptors are trying to acquire more of, not trade away.
If the Raptors are trying to create a position-less roster of 6’9 athletic players, then it would make more sense to trade some of the existing guards, like VanVleet and Trent Jr. While VanVleet is one of the best defensive guards in the league, he’s also undersized for the position and struggles against bigger teams. Trent Jr. is young, with lots of scoring potential, but doesn’t really fit the direction of the team.
A trade that sends those two to Philadelphia makes a whole lot of sense, and is much easier than trying to bring in a third team.
Philadelphia gets a defensive lead guard who can spread the floor, in VanVleet, as well as another dynamic shooter, in Trent Jr.
Now, I know Raptor fans would rather send Dragic instead of VanVleet, but even with VanVleet, this probably isn’t enough to entice Philadelphia, who want an All Star level player in return. VanVleet is a dark horse candidate to make the All Star team, but unless he takes a big step this season, it’s highly unlikely. And it would be difficult for the Raptors to add more to the deal and still match salaries.
Of course, if part of the plan for getting Simmons is to relieve him of primary ball-handling duties, perhaps the Raptors shouldn’t be trading away the player who would be the primary ball handler. So either trade would have its downside.
IN CONCLUSION
Adding a potential perennial All NBA and All Defensive team player who can do so much of what the Raptors are looking for is tempting, but it’s difficult to know whether the potential reward outweighs the risk. At this point, it appears nothing short of Siakam or Anunoby would have to be included in a deal for Simmons. And while we know Siakam can be a core player on a Championship team, the jury is out whether Simmons can. And playing them together just seems like a disaster of Philadelphian proportions.
When the Raptors traded for Kawhi Leonard, he was the piece they needed to take the team over the top and win a title. No one thinks that Ben Simmons is the final piece for the current team to win a Championship, and the Raptors are probably at least a few years away from contending.
Simmons is young (two years younger than Siakam) and his defensive and passing abilities are tantalizing. It’s hard to imagine a tougher trio to score on than Simmons, Anunoby and Barnes. Even more so if the Raptors are able to somehow keep Siakam (or throw in Boucher, Achiuwa, Birch, etc). Add in VanVleet’s lockdown perimeter defense and that would be an absolute nightmare for opposing teams, especially after Barnes develops for a couple of years.
While I certainly understand why Masai and company would like to add Simmons to the roster, it all depends on what they have to give up to get him. My guess is that Simmons goes elsewhere, where they can get a star player more suited to their needs (like CJ McCollum), but no one thought Toronto would get Kawhi, so you never know.
