Sixers rookie is already very much affiliated with . He’s signed with Klutch Sports and is represented by James’ childhood friend, . Simmons spent much of the pre-draft process working out near James’ home base in Cleveland.
And now after playing against Simmons on Sunday, Bulls rookie is comparing Simmons to James:
"He's like a mini-LeBron," the Bulls' 14th overall pick said after facing Simmons for the first time as a pro Sunday. "LeBron's probably top 10, so if he's a mini-LeBron, that's saying a lot."
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Simmons is generally receiving high marks for his performances at summer league. Despite the difficulty he has found scoring at times, ESPN Insider’s Kevin Pelton gave the rookie a B+ for changing up his game against the Bulls:
So Simmons adjusted by becoming more of a scorer and even getting aggressive as an outside shooter. While that resulted in some ugly misses, including an airball just after halftime, Simmons' 18 points were the most he has scored in four games this summer. And overall, Simmons was efficient, shooting 7-of-13 from the field. Included was an impressive dunk in traffic.
Pelton was also one of four ESPN roundtable members that believes Simmons is the rookie that should affect his team the most. Here’s what Amin Elhassan said:
Simmons, hands down. He was very impressive in his summer league debut, and given Philly's lack of talent, Simmons will have every opportunity to create offense for his teammates with his uncanny passing and vision.
Simmons clearly has areas of his game that he needs to work on, but so do all 20-year-old rookies. Still, his strengths have clearly made an impression on the summer league circuit in Utah and Vegas.
Follow Rich on Twitter: @rich_hofmann