Before the start of the basketball season, Ben Simmons said he thought of himself as just another college freshman. The Louisiana State star labeled himself in October as simply "Ben from Melbourne, Australia."
But it was evident even then - as a horde of reporters gathered around him at the Southeastern Conference's media day - that Simmons was much more than an import from a faraway land. He is a basketball player with the rarest of skill sets. He is 6-foot-10 with a 7-footers wingspan. The 19-year-old moves with the fluidity of a point guard and sends passes with great vision.