Jonathon Simmons: Raising His Game For The Spurs At The Right Time

The Spurs’ movie-like success story is stepping up at the right time, raising his 2017 free agency profile in the process.

The San Antonio Spurs have a fantastic success story in Kawhi Leonard. He entered the league as a potentially elite defensive wing and rebounder, but lacked the offensive skill and shooting to go along with it. Now look at him: he’s the reigning two-time Defensive Player of the Year and a near 30-point-per-game scorer in the playoffs, hitting close to 50 percent of his threes.

Then there’s Jonathon Simmons, who isn’t close to Leonard on the court but is far ahead in terms of a storybook rise-to-fame story. He was never drafted. He had to pay $150 just for the chance to try out for the Spurs’ D-League team, the Austin Toros, in 2013. He was sitting on a bus after completing his final game for the Brooklyn Nets’ Summer League team in 2014, and only then received an unexpected call from his agent saying that he’d been signed by the Spurs. You can’t make this stuff up.

Now, Simmons has started for an injured Kawhi Leonard and fully delivered in a shocking, series-ending 114–75 Game 6 win that he helped lead. And it looks like his improved play this season and his playoff performance have earned him far more money and stability when he hits free agency this summer.

Game 5 — as the Spurs took a 110–107 win and 3–2 series lead against the Houston Rockets after Manu Ginobili’s vintage block sealed the deal — was a statement game for Simmons. He had 12 points, two rebounds, two assists, three steals and made some huge plays, but his defense on James Harden in particular raised a lot of eyebrows.

When you hold the potential MVP to 0-of-1 shooting and force five turnovers (out of his total nine) in just six plays where you’re his primary defender, you’re doing pretty good.

The best part? Simmons was at it again in Game 6. In fact, he did even more. He isn’t fully responsible for Harden’s passive, underwhelming 10-point on 2-of-11 shooting performance, but he played a big part and provided more smothering pressure. To go along with such locked-in effort on the potential MVP, Simmons furthered his offensive impact in his first ever playoff start due to Leonard’s left ankle sprain. With a new playoff career-high 18 points on 8-of-12 shooting, four assists and a steal, Simmons couldn’t have done anymore on a night that no one even thought the Spurs could win. Let alone dominate in Leonard’s absence.

The per game averages aren’t what we need to take note of the most, but 13.1 points in the second round against the Rockets is impressive for Simmons. Seeing the improvements in his game as a ball handler, driver and in small, developing doses as a playmaker, teams can be encouraged that he can be signed this offseason and have the possibility for some upside on his next contract. He may be 27 years old and may have entered the league late, but he isn’t a totally finished product.

Simmons’ defense is essential. It’s clear to see why the Spurs allowed seven fewer points per 100 possessions when Simmons was on the floor this season, surrendering a measly 99.1 points per 100 possessions. Especially in today’s smaller NBA with less bruising bigs around, he can guard most players from point guard to power forward with his strong, explosive, and highly agile 6'6" frame. The Spurs have utilized that to help them handle the Rockets’ bevy of shooting and offensive talent.

Take the following plays from Game 5, for example. Simmons stole the ball twice from Harden in overtime alone, helping secure the win with fantastic defense down the stretch that the Spurs probably wouldn’t have won without.

Simmons showed just how quick his hands are as he trailed Harden around a screen from Clint Capela and managed to poke the ball away from behind:

Simmons did the exact same thing a few minutes later, once again stealing the ball from behind as he fought around another Capela screen. You can’t ask for better clutch defense than this:

Well, maybe you can…

Here, with less than 15 seconds left to decide the game, Simmons couldn’t have done a better job guarding Harden one-on-one. He pressed him closely at the perimeter to remove space for a three while shifting his feet to cut off driving lanes, then forced yet another turnover by drawing a charging foul:

Simmons goes at smaller guards equally well. In the following clip you can see two possessions from the end of the first quarter and start of the second when he guarded Lou Williams one-on-one, easily stopping him from getting to the rim and forcing awkward jumpers instead:

However, Simmons wasn’t all defense for the Spurs in Game 5. Before his crucial overtime moments he made some big offensive plays, including a few strong drives early on to help the Spurs towards a 32-point first quarter:

This driving assist late in the third quarter as the Spurs fell behind was a nice example of Simmons’ athleticism and recognition, as he found David Lee for the finish after making Patrick Beverley and Ryan Anderson leave their feet (and coverage of Lee) with a leap to the basket:

Simmons is really coming into his own defensively and doing more on offense, too. As he continues to improve and hopefully improves his shot, he can be a major defensive asset and energizing role player for any team. Plus, if the Spurs are able to keep him, any lineup featuring Simmons and Leonard immediately makes them far smaller, faster and more versatile than any of their typical two-big-man lineups.

That’s been obvious in this series against the Rockets. The Spurs were blown out in Game 1, 126–99, because the Rockets got any shot they wanted all night. San Antonio’s older, slower bigs couldn’t keep up with the barrage of threes or dynamic spread pick-and-roll play whatsoever, and the Spurs were gunned off the floor. Adjusting, going a bit smaller, and learning where to be and how to rotate against such an offense has helped the Spurs come back and take the series lead, but Simmons’ play has been vital, too, especially with increased minutes in the last two games and a series-high 31 minutes in Game 5.

Simmons isn’t the first player we’ve seen continue a breakout in the playoffs for a final financial push before free agency. The best thing about his play, though, is that he hasn’t just convinced a team he’s good by getting hot from three for a few weeks; what he’s doing, from the stellar on-ball defense, to the attacks, to the odd drive and dish, is a testament to his growing talent and hard work. He’s gone from D-League hopeful to playoff hero in four short years.

Simmons has well and truly earned himself a hefty pay raise from his current $874,636 salary. And no matter who tries to pry him away, the Spurs should do their best to keep him. He’s exactly the kind of high-flying role player they need for a new age of post-Duncan/Ginobili/Parker basketball.

All statistics courtesy of Basketball-Reference.com and NBA.com.