Ben Simmons
Oct 23, 2017; Detroit, MI, USA; Philadelphia 76ers guard Ben Simmons (25) dribbles defended by Detroit Pistons guard Reggie Jackson (1) in the second half at Little Caesars Arena. USA TODAY Sports / Rick Osentoski

Philadelphia 76ers point guard Ben Simmons suffered an ankle sprain during his team's 113-91 defeat to the Cleveland Cavaliers at the Wells Fargo Center on Monday (Tuesday in Australia). Simmons left the game midway through the fourth quarter after turning his right ankle. He did not return to the court.

In some positive news for the Sixers, post-game x-rays did not reveal any structural damage. According to ESPN's Dave McMenamin, Simmons will be re-evaluated by Philadelphia team doctors on Tuesday.

Cavs forward Jae Crowder took up the responsibility of guarding Simmons, who is averaging 18.1 points, 7.4 assists, 9.1 rebounds and 2.1 steals in his rookie season.

"I wanted to guard him a little differently than how I've been watching other teams guard so far off him and let him get a head of steam and go downhill. I feel pretty good. It was a good challenge," Crowder said after Simmons finished with 5/11 shooting from 36 minutes on the floor.

Ben Simmons injury update: X-rays return negative

Entering Monday's contest, the pre-match storyline was that of Ben Simmons going up against his idol, LeBron James, for the first time in his NBA career. Though the young Australian showed further flashes of a future superstar, his stat line of 10 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists and 3 steals paled in comparison to James' tally of 30 points, 13 rebounds and 6 assists. The young Sixers team had no answer to the veteran James' onslaught.

After the game, James said he is honoured to mentor Simmons. "I'm honoured that a young, gifted kid like himself would even allow me to be in his life and mentor him and be like a big brother to him. I'm honoured by him and I'd continue to do that as long as he wants me to," said James, who shares an agent with Simmons.

Meanwhile, Sixers coach Brett Brown weighed in on the LeBron James, Ben Simmons relationship. "I get it. I understand it. But Ben hasn't done and we haven't done anything yet. I've seen LeBron from day one. And you've seen him grow. Off the court, I think he's got an element of grace, how he handles himself and carries the NBA logo with a tremendous amount of pride." Stay tuned for the latest Ben Simmons injury update.

RELATED STORIES