Ranking the freshman seasons of former number one high school recruits: 14. Ben Simmons
Freshman stats: 19.2 ppg, 11.8 rpg, 4.8 apg
The expectations for Ben Simmons were extraordinarily high. With high school averages of 28 points, 11.9 rebounds, four assists, 2.6 steals, and 1.5 blocks per game, Simmons began hearing whispers that he could be the next LeBron James.
It made sense. Simmons was a humongous point guard that could bully just about anyone out of the way to make his way to the paint. Normally, players with Simmons ability head to mega programs with winning traditions. Instead, the multi-talented point guard opted to go to LSU.
In his lone season, Simmons did his thing. He averaged 19.2 points, 11.8 rebounds, 4.8 assists, and two steals. Simmons was out of his mind in college and NBA scouts drooled over the possibility of nabbing him for their franchise.
From an individual standpoint, Simmons was terrific but as a whole, LSU was awful. They finished the year at just 19-14 and didn’t even make the cut for the NCAA tournament. LSU also refused to play in the NIT. Simmons was amazing during his one-and-done year in college and went on to become the number one overall pick in the 2016 NBA Draft. We can’t, however, place him too high up this list due to his team playing way worst than expected.