Indiana Pacers: 10 reasons why trading for Ben Simmons is a step backwards

How the Indiana Pacers’ offense can be derailed by a Ben Simmons trade

Reason #3: Ben Simmons is a hole in half-court sets

Ben Simmons is best utilized as a fast break initiator, using his elite court vision and size to bend defenses away and score points in bunches. With Indiana ranking fourth in pace last season, netting him seems to be a perfect marriage, but in hindsight, the fit is a lot tougher to envision.

The Pacers’ renewed breakneck pace last year spawned a more problematic issue: defense. The taxing style of play on offense juiced the team out in stretches, allowing opponents to capitalize and similarly attack the team’s most vulnerable pieces, most notably the main scorers who already have a huge offensive burden.

With Rick Carlisle stressing the importance of defense in his recent press conference, it’s wise to expect that Indiana will try to churn things out in the half-court more often, which doesn’t bode well for a prospective Simmons addition, especially with his limitations as a scorer and shooter giving defense more cushion to harass the team’s best one-on-one players.

Reason #4: Ben Simmons spawns confusing rotation questions

Presumably, even with Simmons, the Pacers will install an offense not far from the team’s scoring schemes in previous years, which is methodical and predicated on ball movement. Last season, the team ranked second in assists. What this means is that players will find ampler scoring opportunities with off-ball movement, his Achilles’ heel, especially with the team boasting playmakers all over the floor in the starting lineup.

Simmons won’t find the ball in his hands for a big bulk of possessions. While the coaching staff can always stagger him so he can play with the second unit more often where his touches will absolutely rise, this will be counterintuitive and a waste of personnel, like TJ McConnell, who similarly lacks an outside shot yet packs the same playmaking boost minus the big man frame. It will be quite tricky finding the right player combinations with him.