Australia's new NBA No.1 draft pick Ben Simmons has been welcomed as a player who can take the struggling Philadelphia 76ers far by club legend Allen Iverson.
The 76ers, as expected, chose the 19-year-old from Melbourne with the first pick of the 2016 NBA Draft in Brooklyn, New York, on Thursday (Friday AEST).
The 208cm tall Simmons hugged his mother Julie and NBL great father Dave after NBA commissioner Adam Silver announced the selection inside the Barclays Center.
"It is amazing," said Simmons, with a 76ers cap on his head.
"I'm happy the Sixers chose me. I've been working so hard to get to this point.
"It is a great city and I'm looking forward to getting to Philly."
The Los Angeles Lakers took Duke University forward Brandon Ingram with the second pick while the Boston Celtics went third with University of California forward Jaylen Brown.
Australians landed two spots in the top 10 first the first time, when giant centre Thon Maker went as the No.10 pick to the Milwaukee Bucks, who ignored some late controversy.
Just hours before the draft reports surfaced that some NBA teams ruled Maker out because they believed the 19-year-old could be aged 21 or 23.
The 216cm-tall Maker was born in war-torn Sudan and, when he was five, his family fled and settled in Perth.
Simmons, who signed a $US20 million ($A26.30 million) endorsement deal with Nike and will earn $US15.42 million ($A20.27 million) over three years with the 76ers, faces a monumental task to turn the Philadelphia team around.
The 76ers were the worst team in the NBA last season with just 10 wins in 82 games and did not do much better the previous two years.
Pressure will be on Simmons, who is viewed as a saviour of the team, just how guard Iverson was when he was picked No.1 by the 76ers 20 years ago and went on to become a 11-time All-Star.
Iverson said Simmons "can do it all" and "has a lot of young talent that can take us far", but warned Philadelphia fans are passionate and will only accept him if he gives 100 per cent when he is on the floor.
"There's going to be some ups, and there's going to be some downs, but these people will stick with you through your ups and your downs," Iverson said.
"I'm the perfect example."
Simmons is the third Australian-born player drafted number one, with Andrew Bogut the top pick in 2005 and Kyrie Irving in 2011.
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