Would the Philadelphia 76ers be better off with Lonzo Ball?

The Philadelphia 76ers have the leagues best rookie in Ben Simmons, but would they be better off with Lonzo Ball? No, probably not, but let’s investigate.

This is a dumb Philadelphia 76ers question.

Lonzo Ball and Ben Simmons are both technically rookies, but weren’t even drafted in the same class, so why compare the two? Shouldn’t a more realistic comparison be between Ball and 2017’s first overall pick Markelle Fultz? Well yes, but Fultz has hardly played, whereas Simmons has absolutely torn up the NBA over his first 13-games in the league, much like Joel Embiid before him.

While Fultz may eventually become a quality player for the 76ers once he returns from his current shoulder injury, this season’s rookie of the year conversation will more likely than not be highlighted by Simmons and Ball, so as the duo prepare to square off in their first meeting as pros why not compare their performances so far this season, and see which point guard would make the 76ers better.

Points Spread

Over the first 13-games of his young pro career, Simmons leads all rookies in points scored with 231, a whopping 98 more points than Ball in one less game. While the pair are obviously in very different situations, both players are their team’s starting point guard and are averaging roughly 34-minutes of playing time a night.

While Simmons’ outside shot is virtually no-existant, Ball’s 41.2-percent efficiency from three hasn’t exactly translated from the college ranks to the pros. So far this season the Lakers‘ guard has attempted 68 three-point shots, roughly 4.8 per-game, but has only completed 17 of those shots, good for a paltry 25-percent efficiency.

As highlighted by NBC Sports Philadelphia hilariously entertaining tweet, the difference between Ball and Simmons’ shooting efficiency has been incredibly noticeable for their respective teams and has shown up not only on the stats sheet but also in the win-loss collum.

With five of the 76ers seven wins coming by a margin of 10 points or less, starting a point guard who’s averaging 9.5 points-per-game as opposed to Simmons 17.8 points-per-game could very well be the difference between a winning record and a losing record.

Winner: Simmons

On-court efficiency

There are only two rookies in the entire NBA who have averaged at least six rebounds and seven assists, Ball, and Simmons, but when you evaluate their respective tapes, they look like incredibly different players.

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While Ball’s 6-foot-6 frame should make him a fairly versatile defender from the point guard position, he’s struggled immensely from the one-position so far this season. Opposing point guards have eaten the former UCLA Bruins’ lunch in virtually every game so far this season, a trend that will likely continue when facing off against the 76ers’ 6-foot-10 wunderkind.

Speaking of Simmons, one of the biggest question marks surrounding the former LSU Tigers’ potential in the NBA, other than his outside shot, was how his game would translate on the defensive end of the court, and so far, the results have been much better than anyone could have ever expected.

Simmons is currently leading all rookies in rebounding with 9.2 boards per game, almost three more than Ball, and has shown an ability to cover multiple positions across the court. Much like the player many compare his game to, LeBron James, Simmons has been able to switch off from less than favorable matchups and has utilized his elite speed to keep with his man, regardless of the position they play.

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While Simmons may never be able to take on the likes of John Wall for 34-minutes, his ability to match up against a variety of players should give the 76ers a unique chess piece who could eventually become elite at both ends of the court.

Winner: Simmons

Signature Shoe

One advantage Ball does have over Simmons is his sheer marketability off the court.

Ball could not only bring his incredibly entertaining Facebook reality show to the City of Brotherly Love, but he’d also be the only player in the entire city with his own signature shoe.

Could you imagine how cool it would be to see a sea of young, impressionable Sixers fans rocking $500 ZO2 sneakers on their way into the Wells Fargo Center?

They could also listen to one of Zo’s instant classic rap bangers, like “Super Saiyan“, an incredibly evocative collection of lyrical gymnastics set over a hip, young club beat.

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All kidding aside, while no player on the Sixers roster currently has a signature shoe, celebrity connections, or a rap song, they are a young team on the rise, and these things will eventually come if they continue to win.

If Embiid and Simmons keep playing like the best young duo in the league, don’t be surprised if they eventually have competing shoe commercial ala Shaq and Penny Hardaway.

Winner: Simmons

And the winner is…..

Simmons, the winner is clearly Ben Simmons.

Is this even a question?

There isn’t a rookie in the league who’s played as well so far or projects to be as good as The Fresh Prince, so why on earth would they want to have anyone else manning the point?

The 76ers have essentially designed their roster around Simmons unique skillset, surrounding the young Aussie with a plethora of position-flexible shooters who can help to cover up his shooting efficiencies, while maximizing his generational passing abilities, and this new-look roster has paid immediate dividends for Brett Brown‘s squad.

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For the first time in Brown’s tenure in Philadelphia, his Sixers squad has a winning record, and much of that success has to be directly linked to his young, 6-foot-10 point guard.