Christian Simmons (196-G/F-1998, college: Mansfield, PA) is a 196cm swing man form Rochester, New York that will play professionally in Ireland this seasonHe began his basketball career at the School of the Arts. He then played 2 seasons at Corning Community College (JUCO). He continued to get a varied spectrum of different schools playing Mansfield University (NCAA2) averaging 14.1ppg, 6.1rpg, FGP: 47.1%, 3PT: 24.4%, FT: 74.1%, Walsh University (NCAA2) averaging 7.4ppg, 3.3rpg, FGP: 50.5%, 3PT: 40.0%, FT: 77.3% and SUNY Oswego (NCAA3) averaging 9.9ppg, 5.3rpg, FGP: 51.9%, 3PT: 33.3%, FT: 69.2%. He spoke to germanhoops.com about basketball. When the interview was conducted, he was slated to play at the Howard Hoops Pro Combine in Milan, Italy, but then declined as he got the Ireland offer.
Thanks Christian for talking to germanhoops.com. Where are you at the moment and how is basketball life treating you at the moment?
First, I would like to thank you for taking the time to talk to me. Currently, I am located in Rochester, New York. The Basketball life definitely has its ups and downs, but staying consistent with multiple workouts and being positive every day is the mindset I like to stay in.
You will be taking part at the Howard Hoops Pro Combine in Italy. How excited are you to come overseas and show your skills?
Being a part of the Howard Hoops Pro Combine is a great opportunity for me to go out and show coaches, managers, spectators, and other players my skill level. I’m very excited to meet the group of guys that we have going. Also getting time to learn from a lot of the coaches and trainers we will be working with while we are over there.
How did you find the contact to Ron Howard? Was it more through guys you know of finding information online?
I found Ron Howard on Instagram because he used to post a lot of job openings. I ended up introducing myself so I can network with him. I did a little bit of research and found out he used to play and since then I’ve always been following and keeping in contact with him which brought up this opportunity to show my talent in Italy.
How thankful are you of having found Ron Howard? He has been helping guys get jobs overseas for a decade.
I am definitely thankful I found Ron Howard because I feel like it is great to make connections and meet guys who are truly invested in helping players find opportunities and reach their dreams. I see that he has been very successful with helping guys earn contracts, so it is a great opportunity to be a part of this.
What have you appreciated most about him? He is a guy that lives and breathes basketball and wants to give the underdog a shot.
What I appreciate most about him is his honesty, upfront, and willingness to go the extra mile to help guys get an opportunity to continue and start their professional basketball career.
Your coming out of school and looking to turn professional. Coming overseas is no cake walk. Have you look around to get tips from guys who have played overseas? Do you know guys that have played overseas?
I am blessed to be in this position. I am back at home because everybody who I train with is in high leagues overseas or in the NBA, so I am only around successful basketball players. I pick their minds every single day and ask them how I can get better and ask for tips on what they did that got them to where they are. The overseas players that I am very close to are Dontay Caruthers, Supreme Hannah, Brian Fobbs, and Jalen Pickett of the Nuggets. We all hold each other to a standard so we can complete the goals we are chasing every day in training.
With what kind of expectation and what are your goals coming to Italy to play against mostly pro players in the combine?
My expectations are to learn from all the coaches and trainers, take as much information as I can, show off my skill set and get better within games and practices, and lastly, earn a contract.
Let’s talk a big about your game. If you had to describe your game to an NBA player who would best fit the description?
If I had to compare my game to NBA player, I would easily say a mixture of Carmelo Anthony and Draymond Green. The reason I relate to Carmelo Anthony is that I like to play a tough/strong style of bully ball. Sometimes I like to play back to the basket, I can be a spot up shooter, and I have the ability to make difficult shots in the mid-range area. Relating to Draymond Green, I play physically on defense; I can switch through all positions. I take pride in rebounding and being a high-energy motor guy and I love to get my teammates involved whether it’s my passing or being very vocal on defense.
You’re a 196cm forward. What really stands out at first glance is your rebounding. Have you always been a good rebounder or has that developed over time?
When it comes to rebounding, I’d like to read where the ball is going to come off the basket after the ball is shot. I am very good at offensive rebounding. When I was younger, that was an easy way for me to score. As I became older, that was a characteristic that got me on the floor. Rebounding has always been a talent for me and that’s why I was able to grab over 700 rebounds in college
Talk about your strengths. You can score and rebound. What else can you do?
I am very vocal on the court no matter if it’s on defense or offense. I make sure at all times I’m giving my all. I am constantly diving on the ground, being in the right spots on defense, getting tips on defense and using my high motor energy to hold my teammates to a high standard and be the leader that we need on the floor to win games.
What kind of defender are you now and what kind of defender do you want to become?
If I had to describe the type of defender I am, I’m physically tough, using my body and my strength at all times. I want to be more intellectual when it comes to defense, like using my IQ to call out sets and know where things are going to happen before it does. Also, I would like to get better at going over screens because I can use improvement there.
What is a hidden strength in your game that isn’t noticed right away on the court?
My passing ability is something that isn’t noticed right away. A lot of times people see scoring and rebounding numbers but a lot of times they don’t see the drive to the paint get off of 2 feet and make the right pass that ends with an assist, or it’s the right pass made that ends with an assist after another pass from my teammate. Ball movement is very important because we can’t have a stagnant offense.
On what area’s of your game are you working on most at the moment so you can continue to grow as a player?
What I’m working on most is making sure I can knock down the three balls consistently at a high-efficiency rate, a lot of mobility, and lifting so that helps with my defense, ballhandling, and a lot of conditioning.
You played JUCO for Corning Community College. I have interviewed 100’s of guys that played JUCO and each guy said it was a very tough journey, but one that helped their development. How was it for you?
JUCO molded my basketball career. I was 260 pounds my freshman year. I was good enough to play with everybody but physically, I wasn’t able to keep up with them. My first year I chose to red shirt. After watching my team my first year, it put a new work ethic in me that I had to outwork everyone around me at all times. Everyone wanted to get a scholarship but truthfully maybe only 1-3 of us out of a 15-man team was going to. My freshman year I lost 20 pounds, then my sophomore year I lost another 20. I went from a redshirt to an All-American and Player of the Year. JUCO was hard mentally but it made me the player I am today. To make it out of JUCO you have to have a killer mentality to be successful and that is one of the areas I grew the most in during my JUCO career. .
In your last season you averaged 23.6ppg, 10.4rpg, 1.9apg, 1.2spg, FGP: 57.1%, 3PT: 35.7%, FT: 78.9%. What did you learn about yourself and JUCO ball that season?
What I learned most about myself this season is that if my coach needs me to focus on scoring, because that would help the team win, then I am very capable of doing it. We were a very good defensive team, but we needed more scoring options. I also learned that no matter how tall a player is that I’m going against, I will still out rebound them every night.
You then played at Mansfield University (NCAA2) averaging 14.1ppg, 6.1rpg, FGP: 47.1%, 3PT: 24.4%, FT: 74.1%. How vital was this season in your development? You made a huge step going from JUCO to NCAA 2 proving you play at the D-2 level.
When it comes to development the workouts my trainers put me through are at a pro level. Over the summertime, I trained with division one and NBA talent, so going from Juco to NCAA D2 was not a hard step for me. This year was more about staying healthy because during this season in the beginning, I was averaging 17+ points per game but I had knee problems in the middle of the year which brought my stats down a little and sadly at the end of the season made me miss the rest of the year ( approximately six games). The one thing I was able to improve on was accepting new roles and embracing them to still support my team.
How tough was it having many great games like scoring 32 points against W.Chester but losing?
It was a very tough situation to be on a team that was not winning a lot. Throughout my whole career, I have been on all winning teams so this was definitely an adjustment for me. Being the leading score is cool but winning is way more important in my eyes I am very competitive, so I will try to do anything in my will to win.
You then played at Walsh University (NCAA2) averaging 7.4ppg, 3.3rpg, FGP: 50.5%, 3PT: 40.0%, FT: 77.3%. How do you remember this season. You seemed to have a different kind of role then at Mansfield?
Playing at Mansfield was a great opportunity but after that year was over, I chose to go to Walsh being that they were a top division two program in the country. At Mansfield, my role was to score. When I went to Walsh my role changed from not only scoring, but focusing more on defense, rebounding, and making sure I shot the three ball at a high percentage. At Mansfield, the percentage was 24 at the end of the year and after I transferred to Walsh at the end of the year, my three-point percentage was at 40. Walsh is a very competitive school and I’m glad I did transfer because I learned so much from the program and it made me such a better player. Before Walsh, I never came off the bench, so it taught me how to stay focused and be ready at all times and when you get in the game you have to produce and do whatever helps the team win. I could’ve easily stayed at Mansfield and averaged 20 points a game the next year but it was more important to me to compete at a high level for a championship and learn from the Hall of Fame coaching culture there at Walsh.
You then played at SUNY Oswego (NCAA3) averaging 9.9ppg, 5.3rpg, FGP: 51.9%, 3PT: 33.3%, FT: 69.2%. You won the SUNYAC title and reached the Sweet 16. How special was the team and experience?
This was a very special team. I joined the team halfway through the year because my college career was over. However, I had an extra semester to play due to Covid. I still had a couple of credits left to graduate, so I went to Oswego since it’s near my hometown so I could finish my degree. Coach Leone has been recruiting me since I was in high school. After a couple of conversations, he wanted me to come to join his team midway through the year and I would finish the season in playoffs with them. This situation has never been done before in his program but since we had such a good relationship, it worked out great. This was a very talented team so since I came midyear, I came off the bench and my goal was to make the biggest impact I could, so we could make the best run in school history.
How did head coach Jason Leone help groom and prepare you for a professional career?
Coach Leone has high expectations for all his players and he demands a high level of intensity every time you step on that court. If you do not give that you would not be playing at all. He helped me make sure every time I’m on the floor I’m giving it my all. I was not able to be with coach for a long period of time but that is one of the biggest things I took from him.
Who won a 1-1 in practice you or Louis Fedullo?
Louis and I never played 1-1 but if we did play, he’s a great guy, but I would win that matchup.
Who was the toughest player you ever faced in your life that reached the NBA?
The toughest player, I have faced that made it to the NBA was either Anthony Lamb, who played for Golden State, or Isaiah Stewert, who plays for the Detroit Pistons.
Please name your 5 best teammates of all-time?
Tyler Moffe- Mansfield University
Amoni Clarke- Corning Community College
James Clarke- High School
Trevor English- Mansfield University
Brian Fobbs- AAU
What is your personal NBA Mount Rushmore of past or present heads?
My personal NBA Mount Rushmore would be LeBron James, Michael Jordan, Magic, Kareem, and Shaq.
Who is your GOAT and why?
My GOAT is LeBron James. Besides scoring 30+ points a game, LeBron does other things that impact the game more than scoring. When it comes to his defense abilities when he was younger, he made everybody around him better. His passing abilities are great, his IQ is higher than almost any player ever, and also a great rebounder. A lot of people focus on scoring in basketball but if he did not score a single point he would still have 10+ Assists and 10+ rebounds, a couple of steals, and a couple of blocks. It’s about impact in the game in other ways.
Did you see the sequel of the classic Coming To America? Shouldn’t they have left it alone?
I did not see the new Coming To America and they should’ve absolutely left it alone. That’s why I chose not to watch it.
German Hoops 