Ben Simmons signs 76ers contract ahead of NBA Summer League
Ben Simmons can expect a baptism of fire when he pulls on a Philadelphia 76ers jersey and takes to the court as an NBA player for the first time.
The 19-year-old Australian will play in an NBA Summer League game on Monday, when he will face a Boston Celtics squad filled with young, jealous and desperate players aiming to take him down.
Celtics rookie guard Jaylen Brown, who sat in Brooklyn's Barclays Center at the recent NBA Draft and watched as Simmons was selected No. 1 by the 76ers, told reporters he was ready to "rip somebody's head off".
Simmons and Brown, picked third by the Celtics, will each make their much-anticipated debut in the NBA Summer League game in Salt Lake City, Utah.
The last obstacle preventing Simmons from taking to the court was erased when the 76ers announced on Sunday that he had signed his rookie contract worth more than $US 16 million ($Aus21.5 million) through the next three years..
The 76ers will play three Summer League games in Salt Lake City this week before they join 23 other NBA teams for the 10-day Las Vegas Summer League tournament.
Summer League teams are made up of recently acquired draft picks, second-year players and desperate young free agents hoping to score a contract, just as undrafted Australian guard Matthew Dellavedova did three years ago with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Simmons, as the top draft pick, will have a bounty on his head, with opposing players looking to outplay the Australian.
Brown, in particular, has not hidden his dislike for the 76ers' decision to take Simmons ahead of him.
At a Celtics basketball camp for children last week a video went viral of Brown playing a young boy in a game of one-on-one.
Brown dunked on the boy when the boy taunted him with: "You ain't good. Ben Simmons is better".
Simmons will also go head-to-head with the Celtics' 23-year-old second-round 2015 draft pick Marcus Thornton, who spent last year with the Sydney Kings in the NBL in Australia.
Watch Ben Simmons make his Philadelphia 76ers debut against Boston Celtics LIVE on Watch ESPNon Tuesday July 5 from 9am (AEST)
