Ben Simmons is not known as a big talker, so his demeanour before the Philadelphia 76ers' demolition of the Miami Heat took his team-mates by surprise.
The 76ers' veteran sharpshooter JJ Redick found himself on the receiving end of multiple blasts from the 21-year-old Australian rookie in the lead-up to Saturday's 130-103 win in Philadelphia.
"I have never seen him so demonstrative with me specifically before a game," Redick smiled while talking to reporters.
"There were three separate times where he was just pushing me and urging me."
Redick, a member of Orlando Magic and Los Angeles Clippers playoff runs during his 12-season career, loved the fire Simmons let loose to motivate the team.
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The 76ers responded, led by their 208cm tall Australian point guard who thrived playing his first NBA post season game.
Simmons finished just one rebound short of a coveted triple-double with 17 points, 14 assists and nine rebounds.
The Heat had no answer with the oversized, athletic Simmons running down court and either slashing to the basket for dunks or dishing the ball to Redick, Marco Belinelli, Dario Saric and Ersan Ilyasova for three-pointers.
The 76ers shot an extraordinary 64 per cent from behind the three point line with Reddick top-scoring with 28 points, Belinelli 25 points, Saric 20 points and Ilyasova 17 points.
The 76ers will look to take a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven first round series against the Heat on Monday.
The game will again be played before boisterous Philly fans at Wells Fargo Center.
The series will then move to Miami for games three and four.
Redick and his 76ers team-mates are hoping to see more locker room fire from Simmons, particularly with the team's medical staff ruling All-Star centre Joel Embiid out of game two as he continues to recover from a face fracture.
"I don't want to say Ben is quiet or soft spoken, but when he speaks it means something," Redick said.
"He's got a quiet cockiness to his game that I love."
