VIDEO: Ben Simmons Working On His Outside Shooting

The one major knock on LSU forward Ben Simmons is that he took very few jump shots during his short stint at LSU. He was just 1-3 from beyond the arc for his collegiate career, and the few jumpers he did take looked extremely awkward. Sixers general manager Bryan Colangelo has indicated that fit will play no factor in the team's decision with the first overall pick, making Simmons the likely choice. But getting him to re-work his jump shot and improving his range will be key in order for him to becoming a truly dominant offensive force.

ESPN's Chad Ford provided some video of Simmons working with Washington guard Dejounte Murray on their outside shooting, and Simmons jumper looks somewhat improved.

Here's @BenSimmons25 & @DejounteMurray trading NBA threes. Shots are coming along ... pic.twitter.com/odOLosD7du

— Chad Ford (@chadfordinsider) June 1, 2016

We'll ignore the fact that he took maybe one shot from behind the NBA three-point line, but this looks like some solid progression from what we saw during his freshman season. His jump shot at LSU had a very awkward hitch in it; he seemed to release the ball on the way down as opposed to the apex of his jump.

That doesn't seem to be the case in these videos. In general, I think his shot form is still a little weird. It looks more like a short-armed fling than anything else, but the key thing is that his shot seems to at least be one fluent motion. That's a step in the right direction.

One other component of his shooting that will be interesting to see is how he does off the dribble. He's going to spend a majority of the time with the ball in his hands so there shouldn't be a ton of catch-and-shoot opportunities for him in the NBA. Video taken by Dennis Scott (credit to Silver Screen and Roll on the find) shows that aspect of his game still needs some work, as that same fluidity in the catch-and-shoot video isn't really there in the one below.

Ben Simmons! 1 or 2 pick in draft?

A video posted by Dennis 3D Scott (@dennis3dscott) on May 19, 2016 at 6:31am PDT

Simmons' shot is definitely a work in progress, but he seems to be coming along nicely. He may never be a knockdown shooter, but I imagine this will be a part of his offensive arsenal over the course of his NBA career.