National Basketball Association

Which Camp Are You? Ben Simmons Or Carson Wentz?

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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Philadelphia Fans now have a choice of rookie stars to support: Ben Simmons or Carson Wentz? Which Are You?

Philadelphia is a sports town. Whether you support the Philadelphia 76ers, the Eagles, the Phillies, or the Flyers, you likely know the name of the team’s stars. But who you support can say alot about you.

Do you identify with football or basketball? Well whichever sport you support, it tells you a little about who you are, what you believe in, and where you are demographically. Just for fun, let’s run down some curious statistics.

Until now, this was a moot point. While Ben Simmons is slated for starting on the Philadelphia 76ers, the Eagles had slotted Carson Wentz for the clipboard.

Suddenly, the Eagles traded starting quarterback Sam Bradford. Poof, just like that, Carson Wentz is a starting quarterback in the NFL. But will he achieve as much as Ben Simmons in the NBA?

Let the debate begin.

Feb 20, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Fans with a sign showing support for the Philadelphia 76ers during a game against the Indiana Pacers at Wells Fargo Center. The Pacers defeated the 76ers 106-95. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

Who you support defines who you are

To start with, we know that this is an election year. But if you are a basketball fan, your political views trend to the liberal side of the street. Based on a study of 2013 sports fans cited in ThePostGame, the trend of basketball fans is to be rather liberal, while football fans tend to run slightly more conservative than middle of the road.

Does that surprise you? In fact, of all sports fans, the NBA fans trend to the most liberal fans recorded.

Another curious element is that NBA fans trend to be more active on social media. Per 2013 Sports fans demographics, the single most tweeted sports event is the NBA championships, which came in at 26.7 million tweets, to the 26.1 million tweets about the superbowl.

But what about action? As a fan, do you attend the games? Per that same Sport Fans demographics, average attendance on a per game basis is much greater in the NFL. 68,000 to 17,000 to be exact.

But be fair. Each NFL team has just eight home games in a season. When you factor in the eight home games in the NFL to the 41 home games in the NBA, the NBA generates more attendance: 697,000 to 544,000.

Sep 1, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz works out prior to a game against the New York Jets at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

It’s Apples and Oranges, Folks

Is it fair to compare? An NBA team is five guys playing 82 48 minutes games. An NFL team is 53 very specialized players playing 16 games for 60 minutes. In the NBA, you can be patient. In the NFL, every moment and every inch counts.

That alters the way fans perceive success. In the NBA, particularly Sixers fans, patience is part of the psyche. “Trust the Process” equates to patience.

NFL head coaching careers are made or destroyed in three seasons. Even less for players, within two years of their draft they are either starting or looking at being traded or cut. There is an invisible hole of blocking, running decoy routes, faking hand offs. They are an integral part of the game, but fall into a catch-all category of intangibles.

The NBA is all about statistics: relevant, advanced, and metrics. The NFL is trying to catch up, but it’s a long haul. In the NBA, they have statistics which measure assists, effectiveness of a player in a line up. The pace of the offense, the number of passes and shots per score.

Ben Simmons shines in those less obvious aspects of the game. We have to see how well Carson Wentz performs in that category.

Apr 10, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Phil Booth and members of the Villanova Wildcats hold the NCAA Championship trophy before the fourth quarter of the game between the Philadelphia 76ers and the Milwaukee Bucks at the Wells Fargo Center. The Milwaukee Bucks won 109-108 in OT. Mandatory Credit: John Geliebter-USA TODAY Sports

Who Brings Philly it’s next championship?

If you are the sentimental type, you have to root for Carson Wentz. The Philadelphia Eagles are unfamiliar with winning that big game, although they have appeared twice. However, if you are pragmatic, you are rooting for the Philadelphia 76ers, as they have tasted the gold and are building the team to threaten to do so again over multiple years.

But if you are a Philadelphia fan through and through, you want both. You want the city to hoist championship after championship. To do so, each sports team must entrust the team to the hands of a special rookie, develop that player to his fullest, and assemble a roster around them.

Right now, both teams are doing so. While the Philadelphia 76ers are well on their way, the Philadelphia Eagles’ journey has just begun. How long will it take? Can either player hoist a trophy for the city?

In the end, Phildelphia entrusts its future to two very young men from opposite ends of the globe. Whether you love the NFL or the NBA, you’ve got reason for optimism now. Whatever happens next, both the Eagles and the 76ers have landed on the road to a championship the right way.