Ben Simmons' 11th triple-double of the season paced the Sixers to a 101-91 win over the Hawks in Atlanta, Friday. With Joel Embiid out, Simmons stepped up to lead Philly to their ninth straight win, keeping them in the fourth seed position in the East. In the process of notching his fifth triple-double in his last ten games, Simmons moved into second place on the Sixers all-time list.
Here's the flashy move and dime that took him there...
The 21-year-old went past one Hall of Famer in Charles Barkley and now only trails another, Wilt Chamberlain.
Simmons only trails all-time NBA leader Oscar Robertson in terms of triple-doubles for a rookie, and only a pair of former MVP's LeBron James and Russell Westbrook have more this season.
Westbrook leads the league with 23 and James has 16 to this point.
His achievement is even more impressive when one considers the fact that only three TEAMS have posted more triple doubles than the former number one overall pick this season.
Simmons' versatile skillset and ability to manage the pace of the game from the point guard position are vital to the Sixers success and that is true to an even greater extent now that Embiid is out of action for the near future.
His game mirrors many of the elite skills that James possesses, including his ability to elevate his teammates on a nightly basis.
The triple-double is clearly not the be all and end all, but the frequency with which Simmons has achieved the feat so far in his young career far exceeds the rate that James did it at in his early years in the league.
Whichever way you look at it, Simmons' ability to notch triple doubles is mightily impressive given his age and lack of experience. He's producing them at an historic rate, and not just for rookies.
Since 1984 just four players have had more triple double's in a season than Simmons; Russell Westbrook (3 times), LeBron James (twice), James Harden, and Michael Jordan.
For reference, none of these players notched a season with 11 triple doubles or more until at least the fifth season of their careers.
Simmons' rookie season is unique, and he is undoubtedly the most similar thing to LeBron in the league right now. Whether he goes on the achieve anything like the unrivalled heights the James has, remains to be seen.
For now, NBA fans should just enjoy watching a star in the making.
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