Written Colin Ward-Henniger at CBS Sports.com
It looks like Philadelphia 76ers rookie Ben Simmons is ready to play.
After sitting out all of last year with a foot injury, the 2016 No. 1 pick has gotten off to a torrid start in his NBA career, averaging 17.4 points, 10 rebounds and 6.6 assists over his first four games.
His best performance to date came Monday in the team’s first win of the season, a 97-86 victory over the Detroit Pistons. Simmons tallied his first career triple-double with a career-high 21 points to go along with 12 rebounds and 10 assists in 34 minutes.
Not done yet @BenSimmons25 -1st player with a triple-double within his first 4 career games since Hambone Williams in 1967
via @EliasSports pic.twitter.com/6oSwKSxbqT
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) October 24, 2017
Who was the last rookie to have a triple-double within his first four NBA games, you might ask? If you had Art “Hambone” Williams, congratulations.
The only other player to accomplish the feat was Oscar Robertson, who put up three triple-doubles in his first four games as a rookie during the 1960-61 season.
Simmons is probably hoping his career ends up more like Robertson than Williams, who averaged 5.3 points, 4.4 assists and 3.1 rebounds in seven NBA seasons. Robertson averaged 25.7 points, 7.5 rebounds and 9.5 assists in his Hall of Fame career.
No matter how Simmons’ career ends up, however, the Sixers and their fans are happy to watch he’s brought to the court in his first four games. The 6-foot-10 lefty is playing legitimate point guard — not point forward — most of the time when he’s on the court, which allows him to put his full, versatile arsenal of weapons on display, like he did on Monday.
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