You want to know why Clemson basketball is competing as one of the best teams in the Atlantic Coast Conference this season? Look no further than No. 25, Aamir Simms.
After starting the season hot, with winning nine out of the first ten games, Clemson was forced to put a pause on their season for almost two weeks due to COVID-19 protocols. When they came back, they appeared to have lost their mojo. Now they find themselves trying to climb out of the hole that they have dug themselves into by losing the three straight games to Virginia, Georgia Tech and Florida State.
Slowly but surely, the Tigers are getting back into their groove with two recent critical wins against Louisville and Carolina. Getting out of a funk is no small task, so having a leader on the team like Simms is immensely valuable. His stats speak for themselves. Simms leads the team in practically every single category. He averages the most points per game with 12.3, most rebounds per game with 5.9 and most assists per game with 2.8. So far this season he’s scored a total of 197 points, which is 59 more points than the second highest point scorer, Nick Honor. Simms has the most offensive rebounds with 45, the most total rebounds with 98 and the most assists with 44.
When you have a guy who leads the team in both points scored and assists, that’s when you know he is special, and it also shows his unselfish nature with the ball. Simms knows when to pull up for the shot, or keep the ball on the floor and pass it away. Now, if there was one area that Simms could work on, it would be turnovers as he leads the team with that as well with 36 total turnovers this season.
This season is Simms’ last ride with the Tigers, so you better believe he wants to leave his legacy and take his team far in the big dance in March. Being one of the older guys on the team, Simms knows both the disappointment of not making the tournament, and the excitement of making it to the sweet 16. With only seven games left in the regular season, Clemson basketball has to be on their A-game, meaning so does Simms.
The Tigers are not known for putting up the most points on the board, so as the leading scorer, Simms is going to make sure he’s carrying as much of that load as he can. When Simms and the rest of the Tigers are focused and playing their best basketball, they are dangerous. Clemson fans should be excited because the Tigers have a serious chance to surprise some people in the big dance this year.
