Josh Giddey recruits Ben Simmons to Australia national team: “Obviously he was dealing with some stuff with Philly and then a fresh start in Brooklyn"
OKC Thunder star Josh Giddey has reportedly made an attempt to recruit Ben Simmons to play for the Australian national basketball team. He hopes to turn the national team into one of the more competitive sides on the international stage.
Giddey has turned a lot of heads this season with his impressive performances. The sophomore guard has emerged as a star-caliber player for the Thunder as he forms a potent backcourt duo with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
Earning a reputation as one of the best young playmakers in the game, Giddey has certainly proven his worth. However, the youngster believes that the Australian national team is still missing a few pieces.
In this regard, Josh Giddey attempted to recruit Simmons to join the team again.
Simmons, who has had difficulties representing his country on the international stage, pulled out of the 2021 Tokyo Olympics as well. However, the Boomers managed to do just fine without him as they made history by winning the bronze medal at the Olympics.
Considering that the team were shorthanded with Giddey and Simmons out, the Boomers managed to achieve great things. However, with two star-caliber players in the lineup, the Australian team could be scary.
The Thunder star appeared aware of this when he publicly attempted to recruit Simmons to the Australian team. When discussing his intent, Giddey said:
"Obviously he was dealing with some stuff with Philly and then [made] a fresh start in Brooklyn.
“People forget that Ben’s an All-Star. He was, I mean he is one of the best players in the league. He’s obviously going to need time find his feet, he hasn’t played for a long time in the NBA.
“I’m excited for what he can do and hopefully soon we can both be apart of the Boomers together and help Australia win a gold medal.”
Josh Giddey recruiting Ben Simmons to Australian national team: ‘He is one of the best players in the league’ ahnfiredigital.com/nba/brooklyn-n…
The prospect of having Simmons play alongside Giddey seems immensely promising on paper. The Boomers could surely benefit from having two high-quality playmakers running the game.
However, given the form the Brooklyn Nets star is currently in, Josh Giddey may have overestimated his projections by a fair bit.
Ben Simmons hasn't made an impact in Brooklyn
Josh Giddey painted an interesting picture when he presented the potential of pairing himself with Brooklyn Nets star Ben Simmons. Unfortunately, the pair itself is riddled with flaws.
Josh Giddey has shown a lot of potential as a playmaker and a scorer. Although his athletic ability is limited, he makes up for it with high IQ and tremendous skill. This has resulted in him averaging a solid 12.9 points, 5.6 rebounds and 4.9 assists per game.
While Josh Giddey makes for a solid counterpart in almost any scenario, Simmons may not be the ideal running mate for him.
Simmons is also known as a tremendous playmaker and defensive force. Unfortunately, he hasn't been able to put this skill on display as of yet. In this regard, he continues to be a common target for the media.
Read: Shannon Sharpe trolls Ben Simmons after another dud in Brooklyn Nets loss: “I don’t know what Ben Simmons was working on when he was away from the Sixers but basketball isn’t one of em"
With certain rumors also suggesting that Simmons may be on the way out of Brooklyn, the Nets star may continue to face issues with adapting. This could be detrimental to the process of returning to game condition.
Also Read: NBA Rumors: Dallas Mavericks potential suitor for struggling Ben Simmons