Sixers 2016 Draft Recap

PHILADELPHIA, PA – The Philadelphia 76ers selected forward Ben Simmons of Louisiana State University with the first overall pick of the 2016 NBA Draft, presented by State Farm. The Sixers also selected Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot (24) and Furkan Korkmaz (26) in the first round. Simmons is the third player in franchise history to be drafted first overall, joining Allen Iverson (1996) and Doug Collins (1973).

In his lone collegiate season at LSU, Simmons averaged 19 points, 12 rebounds, five assists, two steals and one block in 35 minutes per game, each of which led the Tigers. Simmons was the consensus National Freshman of the Year, SEC Freshman of the Year and was the only freshman named to the 2016 Consensus All-America Team.

Simmons was born on July 20, 1996 in Melbourne, Australia. He moved to the United States in 2013 and enrolled at Montverde Academy in Florida. There, Simmons would lead the Eagles to three consecutive National High School Championships. Following his senior season, he was named the Naismith National Boys Player of the Year and Gatorade National Male Basketball Player of the Year.

Simmons’ father, David, played 13 seasons in the Australian National Basketball League, earning All-League honors with Melbourne in 1990 and winning a league championship in 1993.

The Sixers selected French forward Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot with the No. 24 overall pick, who most recently played for KK Mega Leks in the ABA League JTD. The 21-year-old averaged 14 points, five rebounds and three assists in 33 contests during the 2015-16 season. Luwawu-Cabarrot represented France in the 2015 U-20 European Championship where he averaged 12 points, five rebounds and two steals in 28 minutes per game.

Additionally, the Sixers chose Furkan Korkmaz at No. 26, who was teammates with Dario Saric for the past two seasons with Anadolu Efes in the Turkish BSL. The 18-year-old guard played in 56 games this past year, averaging four points on 46-percent shooting (40-percent 3FG) in 11 minutes per game. Korkmaz helped lead Turkey to a silver medal in the 2015 U-18 European Championship where he averaged 16 points, five rebounds, three assists and three steals in 32 minutes per game.