Aron Baynes is ready to face two Big Bens when he heads to London with his Boston Celtics to take on the Philadelphia 76ers.
Queenslander Baynes plans to do a bit of sightseeing in London before battling Australian phenomenon Ben Simmons and the Philadelphia 76ers in the January 11 game at The O2 arena.
The Celtics lead the NBA's Eastern Conference and have been victorious in their two games against the 76ers this season, although Baynes has been impressed with future Boomers team-mate and NBA Rookie of the Year frontrunner Simmons.
"He's such a big point guard and causes some match-up problems, but that's where we are lucky because we are so versatile we can throw different looks at him defensively," Baynes, speaking on an NBA conference call with reporters to promote the London game, said.
"When he keeps getting the same look throughout the 48 minutes that's when he gets comfortable and starts finding a rhythm for himself."
Baynes, Simmons and Australia's other NBA contingent of Patty Mills, Andrew Bogut, Matthew Dellavedova, Joe Ingles, Dante Exum, Thon Maker, Mangok Mathiang and another 76ers draft pick, Jonah Bolden, are expected to come together to form the strongest squad in Australian basketball history for the 2019 World Cup in China and the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.
"We're definitely excited to incorporate Benny into the Boomers program," Baynes said.
"We have that solid core group of guys, but we have a lot of young guys coming through as well - not only Benny but Thon, Jonah and a whole list of young guys that are going to be the foundation for the Boomers moving forward.
"Over the next couple of years trying to integrate those guys into the system is going to be a lot of fun for us."
The Celtics will be taking family members to London, with Baynes' wife Rachel keen to see the sights and take in a West End show.
"It's pretty awesome for us to see Buckingham Palace, parliament, Big Ben," Baynes said.
"That's what we grew up learning about."
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