Brooklyn Nets head coach Jacque Vaughn says Ben Simmons may struggle for action as defenses focus on him after Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving trades after playing just THIRTEEN minutes in Knicks loss
As the Brooklyn Nets adjust to life without superstars Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, they will continue to try and find a balance for their remaining star Ben Simmons.
Simmons only played 13 minutes and came off the bench during his team’s 123-106 loss to the rival New York Knicks on Monday night. He logged two points on two shot attempts, with three rebounds and two assists.
Once the final buzzer sounded, Nets head coach Jacque Vaughn said it will be a challenge to get Simmons on the floor more often, as defenses zero in on him now Irving and Durant aren’t there to draw attention away.
‘It’s going to be some work that we have to do,’ Vaughn said. ‘Because you just take a look at what the lineups could potentially look like.
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‘You put another big next to Ben, then you got to figure out what the spacing is around him.
Nets PG Ben Simmons (10) logged only two points in 13 minutes off the bench in a loss Monday
Nets coach Jacque Vaughn says it will be challenging to find the right balance for Simmons
‘Then if you put another playmaker next to him, then you got to figure out what Ben looks like without the basketball.
‘Then if you go small with Ben, then you have to figure out can you rebound enough with him?
‘So, the challenges are ahead of us. We’ll look them head-on. We’ll figure it out. We have the personnel to figure it out.
‘Whether it is me mixing and matching throughout different pieces of the game, and allowing him to have a group and run with a group, that part we’ll figure out, but you see the challenges that lie ahead.’
Simmons arrived in Brooklyn last year after a trade with Philadelphia that sent them James Harden.
As a whole, the game against the Knicks was tough for Brooklyn – which was led by Spencer Dinwiddie’s 28 points, four assists, and three rebounds. No one else on the Nets got more than 14 points.
On the other hand, Knicks guard Jalen Brunson dropped 40 points and five assists, Julius Randle got a double-double with 18 points and ten rebounds, and Josh Hart managed 27 points off the bench alongside five boards and five assists.
Vaughn admitted his team just couldn’t generate offense and couldn’t keep up with the Knicks in the Garden – and that he tried multiple combinations to see if there was a good fit for the 6-foot-10 point guard Simmons.
Simmons (10) and the Nets couldn’t contain Josh Hart (3) who grabbed 27 pts on Knicks debut
Vaughn says he tried different personnel combinations to pair Simmons, but none that worked
‘With Brunson being out there, trying to throw different bodies with him,’ Vaughn said. ‘We’re always concerned about [rebounding], so didn’t want Ben to be the lone big out there.
‘We tried him with another big; I didn’t like that rhythm of the game because we weren’t scoring enough at that time. A lot of different problems thrown at you in the course of a game; you try to figure them out.’
Vaughn later added: ‘I think overall, and tonight, just what we want from each guy is to give everything, every ounce that they have, every single game.
‘All 16 guys are in that bucket. Trying to figure out what lineup fits around Ben, what position fits for Ben, how we can make him look good at every opportunity.
‘That’s the goal. I’m still trying to figure that out. That’s on me to figure that out. But I think overall as a team, we’re going to try different lineups to try to figure this out.’
