Getty Ben Simmons of the Philadelphia 76ers shoots the ball as Kawhi Leonard of the Toronto Raptors defends.
After Philadelphia 76ers head coach Brett Brown decided to stick Ben Simmons on Kawhi Leonard in game two, the Sixers were able to pull off a road upset over the Toronto Raptors. An unstoppable force in game one, Simmons made Leonard work in game two and while he still finished with a great night, Leonard wasn’t able to will his team to victory like he was in the first go-round.
Coming off a big win with the series heading back to Philadelphia tied at one game each, is Ben Simmons the permanent answer to the 76ers’ Kawhi Leonard problem?
Is Philadelphia 76ers Star Ben Simmons the Key to Stopping Toronto Raptors & Kawhi Leonard?
Ben Simmons could possibly be the key to slowing down Kawhi Leonard and the Raptors. After game two where Simmons drew a heavy serving of guarding Leonard, the Sixers pulled out the win and made Kawhi work for his buckets. Although he still poured in 35 points, he didn’t have the same deadly efficiency that put game one out of reach. Only shooting 30% from behind the arc, Simmons’ length helped him considerably when closing out on Leonard.
When Kawhi is functioning at peak efficiency, the Raptors become nearly impossible to stop. Between his hounding defense on the perimeter and his efficient scoring and playmaking ability, Leonard has the ability to carry the Raptors on his own. He did just that in game one, picking up an insane 45 points on 23 shots. While Simmons cannot fully stop him, he can slow him down and make him work a bit more for those numbers.
Consider that in game one, Leonard had a net rating of +26. The Raptors won by 13 in that game and were able to coast on the strong play of Leonard when he takes a breather. However, in game two, a less efficient (but still really good) Leonard managed just a +4 rating – which the Raptors bench happily blew. Typically Toronto has been known for their depth and incredibly strong bench play. However, the 76ers have been playing their stars into the ground and beating up on the Raptors second unit. Simmons saw a whopping 44 minutes in game two meaning that the Raptors need to build up big leads with Leonard and the starters on the floor.
Philadelphia 76ers vs Toronto Raptors Game Three Preview
Heading into game three in Philadelphia, the 76ers desperately need to hold onto the home court advantage they just snatched from the Raptors. Kawhi will have had a few days to adjust to the new defensive looks that Simmons and Brett Brown have been throwing his way and the hyper-intelligent basketball robot should be in line for another big outing.
Part of the Raptor’s biggest struggles in game two didn’t come from Leonard being slowed down but more their own doing. While Simmons did force Leonard to pass out of the paint more often, Leonard was finding teammates open for clean looks. Unfortunately, the Raptors weren’t able to knock much down and collectively shot just barely over 20% from beyond the arc (excluding Leonard).
Until the rest of the Raptors prove to be reliable perimeter threats, the Sixers are going to keep dropping men into the paint to help with Leonard and forcing the Raptors to make another player beat them. While another abysmal shooting performance from three isn’t likely, the Raptors can ill afford to drop another game.