Anfernee Simons Graciously Accepts "Most Improved Player" Award
Dec 26, 2018 18:50:36 GMT
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Post by TimPig on Dec 26, 2018 18:50:36 GMT
"He saw something in me no one else did," were the only words that Bulls point guard Anfernee Simons could muster on the podium at the TMBSL annual awards show in Las Vegas this past weekend.
Simons, of course, was referring to Bulls owner and general manager Tim Pig, who himself was honored earlier this month as the first member of the famed Big Baller Bulls. Pig acquired Simons last season from the Portland Trailblazers in exchange for cash considerations and expiring contracts.
After performing well following the move to Chicago last season, Simons was handed the starting reins this year and never looked back. The IMG Academy graduate posted career highs in points, rebounds, assists, steals, and minutes per game en route to being named the league's Most Improved Player. He finished fourth overall in the league in minutes per game and second in assists per game, trailing only fellow elite point guard Courtney Alexander in that category.
Better things appear to be on the horizon for Simons, who played the entire season with a broken right hand.
A career journeyman, the Bulls are Simons' seventh team in his 11 professional seasons. Still just 29 and after receiving limited minutes during his career, he appears to have quite a bit left in the tank.
"I'm just getting started here," said Simons during a press conference after the awards show. "Someday, you'll see my name in the rafters at The Divided Center with the rest of the Big Baller Bulls. I was also the one who asked Tim to hang the blank championship banner up there because we're going to fill it up soon. That wasn't his idea and he was originally against it, but he always listens to his players and that's what we came up with after a team vote."
"When you don't luck your way into multiple top three draft picks two years in a row, it makes building a franchise more difficult," continued Simons, taking obvious shots at his Central Division counterparts in the Hawks and Hornets. "We feel like it's us against the world. A group of misfits and rejects who will be competing for a championship soon enough. We're the perfect example of the difference between a good GM and a lucky one, or ones."
Simons, of course, was referring to Bulls owner and general manager Tim Pig, who himself was honored earlier this month as the first member of the famed Big Baller Bulls. Pig acquired Simons last season from the Portland Trailblazers in exchange for cash considerations and expiring contracts.
After performing well following the move to Chicago last season, Simons was handed the starting reins this year and never looked back. The IMG Academy graduate posted career highs in points, rebounds, assists, steals, and minutes per game en route to being named the league's Most Improved Player. He finished fourth overall in the league in minutes per game and second in assists per game, trailing only fellow elite point guard Courtney Alexander in that category.
Better things appear to be on the horizon for Simons, who played the entire season with a broken right hand.
A career journeyman, the Bulls are Simons' seventh team in his 11 professional seasons. Still just 29 and after receiving limited minutes during his career, he appears to have quite a bit left in the tank.
"I'm just getting started here," said Simons during a press conference after the awards show. "Someday, you'll see my name in the rafters at The Divided Center with the rest of the Big Baller Bulls. I was also the one who asked Tim to hang the blank championship banner up there because we're going to fill it up soon. That wasn't his idea and he was originally against it, but he always listens to his players and that's what we came up with after a team vote."
"When you don't luck your way into multiple top three draft picks two years in a row, it makes building a franchise more difficult," continued Simons, taking obvious shots at his Central Division counterparts in the Hawks and Hornets. "We feel like it's us against the world. A group of misfits and rejects who will be competing for a championship soon enough. We're the perfect example of the difference between a good GM and a lucky one, or ones."
