76ers coach untroubled by negativity surrounding Ben Simmons’ attitude

BEN Simmons can reportedly enter Friday’s NBA Draft in a relaxed mood, after Philadelphia informed him who they’ll take with the first pick.

Ben Simmons continues to divide opinion in the United States.

QUESTION marks around the attitude of Australia’s potential number one pick Ben Simmons have not deterred the Philadelphia 76ers.

Cleveland-based NBA reporter Chris Haynes reported this morning the 76ers told Simmons’ camp they will select him with the first pick in Friday’s NBA Draft.

This morning Philadelphia 76ers informed camp of Ben Simmons he would be taken No. 1 in NBA Draft, league sources tell @clevelanddotcom.

— Chris Haynes (@ChrisBHaynes) June 21, 2016

Earlier this week former NBA star Tracy McGrady appeared to throw shade at the Melbourne-born youngster when he took issue with the behaviour of someone “they say might be the No. 1 pick” in the suite he was in at Game Six of the NBA Finals in Cleveland.

“There was one guy that just walked in there and acted like he didn’t know nobody,” McGrady told The Jump host Rachel Nichols.

McGrady — who watched the game with NBA legend Bill Russell and his cousin and fellow former star Vince Carter — didn’t mention Simmons by name but left little doubt regarding who he was talking about.

Former NBA Superstar 'Tracy McGrady' is not too happy with potential #1 pick Ben Simmons. Video by: @BreesInDaCut pic.twitter.com/DCCZSO5mJ8

— Hardys Closet® (@HardysCloset) June 18, 2016

On Tuesday, former NBA coach and general manager turned analyst Stu Jackson also took shots at Simmons’ character.

“There’s just something about the way Simmons has handled himself, or been handled by his camp, that gives me a little bit cause for pause. Just in terms of whether mentally and personally he’s ready to make this jump to the NBA level,” Jackson told SI.com.

“I can’t get into a guy’s mind. You can only speculate and evaluate based on what you see. What I saw is a player in college, who was at LSU, that didn’t have a very good season. I saw a player that didn’t necessarily persevere as well as I would have liked through not having a very good season ... his body language at times bothered me.

“There's just some personal characteristics with the way he portrayed himself and performed that just gave me a reason to be a little bit hesitant about taking him number one.”

Ben Simmons has been seen courtside at several NBA playoff games.

But the only opinion that really matters is that of Philadelphia 76ers coach Brett Brown — the former coach of the Australian men’s basketball team knows Simmons better than most NBA coaches.

Speaking on radio in Philadelphia on Tuesday, Brown — who knows Simmons’ father, Dave, from his time in the NBL — said he had no doubts about the star prospect’s attitude.

“I don’t and I think when you look at somebody being on the stage, coming from overseas and then being slapped on to the United States stage and having the blanket of everybody having an opinion, and scrutiny, and media assessments; and then, the LSU program, you know, didn’t win, and he didn’t do some things — I don’t,” Brown told WIP radio’s Angelo Cataldi.

“I think it’s part of being 19, 20 years old. I know how he ticks. I know his family. And from a competitive standpoint and a growth perspective, I mean we all get it. They’re just teenagers. I think the foundation of his character and the foundation of his family, he’s been raised well. He comes from strong values. I don’t worry about those sort of conspiracy theories that at times surround Ben.”

Brown added that his long history with the Simmons family was an advantage at this stage of the draft process.

“I think it has to be. How can it not be? You can’t make up the history that I have had with their family and then you fast-forward it to 2016 and connecting the dots to end up here is very unusual,” he said.

“He’s in a position to be selected first and we’re in a position where the ping-pong ball fell our way, and we have an opportunity to choose him.

“Knowledge of his background, his coaches, people that were around him, his family, I feel like how can that not be an advantage, and in many ways a great advantage?”

Originally published as 76ers coach untroubled by negativity surrounding Ben Simmons’ attitude