BOSTON — Anfernee Simons has not been handed an easy role in Boston. The veteran guard was acquired from the Blazers this summer in a deal for Jrue Holiday and promptly handed a reserve role after spending several years as a starter with the Blazers. His minutes have fluctuated massively from night to night, going from as high as 33 to as low as 12 while Joe Mazzulla cycles through various lineup looks with his newly constructed roster.
There have been plenty of ups and downs along the way but Simons was a massive bright spot offensively for Boston Sunday, erupting for 16 of his 23 points in the first half of a 138-129 win over the Magic.
It was the second straight 23-point performance for Simons one week after going scoreless in a win over the Clippers. The shifts are something that the 26-year-old are still trying to get accustomed to in his new home.
“Yeah, I mean, obviously, the human side it’s not easy,” Simons said. “Just feeling like what I could’ve done better in those times. But also, like I said before, controlling the controllables and living with the results after that. I think that’s what I’ve been trying to hammer down over the past couple games.
“It’s just controlling the controllables and letting everything fall into place. I think I’ve been doing a pretty good job of dealing with all that and dealing with the emotional side of it. And knowing that if I’m playing 15 minutes, as long as I did what I had to do in those 15 minutes and we’re coming out with wins, then that’s all that matters.”
Simons may have started to turn a corner though offensively in recent games as he scored over 20 points in back-to-back games for the first time all year Sunday. His efficiency (8-of-11 from field, 4-of-7 from 3-point range) continues to be a bright spot as he’s been the best high volume 3-point shooter (41 percent) on the roster this year.
“He’s playing his role really well,” Joe Mazzulla said. “I think he’s giving us everything. He’s trying to understand the system. He’s learning. He’s competing. But I think the guys are doing a good job. I think he’s just getting more comfortable coming off the bench and being aggressive right away. I think in the first few games, he was kind of easing into it. I think the last few weeks is kind of like, that’s what we need him to be, and so he’s done a great job of that, and just scoring in a bunch of different ways. So it’s good to see him do that.”
The future for Simons remains a bit of a question mark with the 6-foot-3 guard playing on an expiring contract worth over $26 million. Whether Boston keeps him through the end of his contract will likely be dependent on the trajectory of their season to some degree and how they want to handle roster building for the future. In the meantime, Simons is showing himself to be a promising spark off the bench in Boston’s offensive system most nights.
“I think honestly just keeping it simple,” Simons said of how he’s getting comfortable. “In previous years, that was kind of my thing -- just ease into the game and see how they guarded me, and then I started being more aggressive in the second half. And so here, obviously I don’t have that much time to be able to ease into the games, so taking the opportunities as they are -- just being myself, aggressive, and also making the right plays, as well. So I think simplifying that way has been easy for me for the past couple games.”
Trade season in the NBA does not begin until Dec. 15 but Simons remains a name worth watching especially if he keeps putting together performances like Sunday’s.
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