The prolific 76ers beat writer Keith Pompey was recently picked up by the The Sydney Morning Herald. In other words, the first selection of the Philadelphia 76ers Ben Simmons, is more than a national story. It is world news because of the “Australian connection.”
It’s not that Australia is all of the sudden taking notice of the NBA’s first pick however, “because the NBA’s popularity is rising in Australia. Seven Aussies – Andrew Bogut, Patty Mills, Matthew Dellavedova, Aron Baynes, Dante Exum, Cameron Bairstow, and Joe Ingles – were on NBA rosters this season,” as Pompey notes.