Memphis Grizzlies Summer League Player Reviews: Kobi Simmons

Now that the Las Vegas NBA Summer League is over, we have decided to conduct Memphis Grizzlies summer league roster player reviews. And with that, let’s get started!

The 20-year old Kobi Simmons had an underwhelming season at the University of Arizona, but decided to go pro after one year despite much criticism from the college basketball world. Although undrafted, the point guard signed a two-way player contract with the Memphis Grizzlies just a couple weeks ago.

What I like:

Immediately upon watching Simmons take the floor, I noticed one thing: explosiveness. He can blow by defenders with his quick first step, allowing himself to get an easier shot at the basket. The 6-foot-4 guard flew above other players, snagging rebounds from high in the air with his 38.5-inch vertical. Boy, it was a sight to see.

Another thing I took away from Simmons’s game was that he had a pretty good floater. After beating his man off the dribble, he was able to finish above bigger defenders with a nice teardrop floater in the lane.

Furthermore, Simmons has a flashiness about him that reminds me of a young Pete Maravich. He was throwing some flashy no-look passes to his teammates for easy buckets. It was pretty fun to watch. Here’s an example:

Simmons is also a very tenacious defender. He would hound opposing point guards, trying to make it very uncomfortable for them to have the ball. And, for the most part, he did a good job of that throughout the summer league.

What I don’t like:

He seemed out of control quite often, which is typical of a rookie point guard. Usually, young players get lost in the mess and feel as if they need to do everything. And that was the case with Kobi Simmons at times throughout his six games.

His shot selection was frequently very bad; he would shoot step-back, contested threes that would have you scratching your head. On top of that, he shot very poorly from the field (25.6 percent) as a result of his appalling shot selection. Also, in running the pick and roll, he would struggle in his decision to pass or shoot, sometimes leading to a turnover and points for the other team.

His lack of strength is also another concern to me. At just 170 pounds, he had trouble absorbing contact from bigger, heavier defenders and playing against stronger, heavier guards. If he is going to be a solid role player in this league, he has to put on some more muscle and weight so that he won’t be a liability defensively.

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Final Take:

Overall, I was pretty impressed with Kobi Simmons’s game. In fairness, I wasn’t expecting much from the rookie, but I like what I saw for the most part throughout the six games he played in. He has a great deal of improving to do, but at just 20-years old, he’s got a lot of time to get better.

If he can put on some weight, it’ll help him significantly on the defensive end so that he doesn’t get bullied by opposing players. And if he can make smarter decisions in the game – controlling the tempo and not forcing bad shots and passes – he could potentially have a bright future in the NBA.

The skill set is there for the explosive guard, and floating around between the G-League (Memphis Hustle) and the Grizzlies can only help his maturity as a young point guard looking to get better. I look forward to seeing what Kobi Simmons is doing in the near future.

Here are his summer league highlights…enjoy!