Ben Simmons a Winner in NBA All-Star Debut

Philadelphia 76ers guard Ben Simmons made an impactful NBA All-Star debut in Charlotte, North Carolina on Monday.

22 year old Ben Simmons played a key role in Team LeBron’s comeback victory over Team Giannis. Team LeBron ran out as eventual 178 – 164 winners after being down by 18 points at one stage.

Ben Simmons finished with 10 points, 6 rebounds and seven assists with five-of-five shooting. More impressively, he did so in just 16 minutes on the court.

He played a key role in two crucial runs, including one when captain LeBron James was on the bench. The 33-14 run in the third quarter was instrumental in setting up the win.

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His first taste of the NBA All-Star game appears to have left its mark on Simmons, who seemed inspired by it.

“Being around so many great players, it makes you want to get better,” Simmons said.

The story of the game was a tale of the substitutes who turned it around. After LeBron and his starters failed to dominate, it was up to the bench to go on a game winning run.

Team Giannis started better, with Antetokounmpo getting in some early dunks. In perhaps the highlight of the game, he scored an incredible alley-oop dunk from a spectacular Steph Curry pass. Curry bounced the ball over his Golden State Warriors teammate Kevin Durant for Giannis to finish.

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Giannis Antetokounmpo finished as the NBA-All star game’s top scorer with 38 points, 11 rebounds and 7 assists. Steph Curry channelled his inner Harlem Globetrotter as he scored 17 points and made 5 assists.

However, it was Team LeBron’s Kevin Durant who claimed the All-Star MVP award with a team-high 31 points.