The 2016 NBA Draft kicked off at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn on Thursday night, with the Philadelphia 76ers selecting Australian LSU forward Ben Simmons as the No. 1 overall pick.

NBA Draft 2016: Sixers Select LSU’s Ben Simmons As No. 1 Overall Pick

As a youngster growing up in Australia, 19-year-old Simmons looked up to former guard Allen Iverson, who was also drafted by the Sixers as the first overall pick in 1996. The versatile forward is the franchise’s first top draft pick since Iverson.

“A lot of people don’t know that I actually had a poster of A.I. when I was young in my room,” Simmons said. “It was a big diamond-cut poster of him. I just remember him being one of those point guards, a smaller guy with cornrows and the headbands. I remember I used to have the cornrows when I was younger. He was one of those players that fought every day.”

During his only year at Baton Rouge, Simmons averaged an impressive 19.2 points, 11.8 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game. The 6-foot-10, 240-pound player also displayed terrific ball-handling and passing abilities.

Simmons already knows his new head coach, Philadelphia’s Brett Brown. Brown coached Simmons’ father Dave in Australia years ago.

“I coached Ben’s father a long time ago,” said Brown, who coached the Australian men’s national team and was also head coach of the Sydney Kings of the Australian National Basketball League. “I’ve known Ben since he was born. I’ve known his family since the late ’80s. Just having that knowledge of where he was raised and understanding the culture, I also lived 17 years in Australia.”

The Australian expressed relief after he became a Sixer.

“I’m happy to be part of the family now,” Simmons said. “It’s a weight off my chest. I’ve been looking forward to this day for a while, so I’m glad I’ve made history, not only for myself but my family and Australian basketball.”

Simmons joins Shaquille O’Neal (1992) as the second top pick out of LSU. He is also the second Australian to be taken first overall after Andrew Bogut in 2005.

Another top contender to go to the Sixers as the top pick was Duke forward Brandon Ingram, another freshman. The Los Angeles Lakers ended up taking Ingram moments later as the second overall pick.

The 76ers also selected forward Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot from France as the 24th first-round pick, and shooting guard Furkan Korkmaz from Turkey as the 26th pick.

The Boston Celtics chose freshman small forward Jaylen Brown from the University of California as the third pick. The 6-foot-7, 19-year-old Brown averaged 14.6 points and 5.4 rebounds per game in just one season at California, and earned Pac-12 Freshman of the Year honors along with a spot on the First-Team All-Pac-12. He scored in double figures during 27 of the 34 games he played in, and notched the third most points (498) by a freshman in program history.

The Phoenix Suns drafted Croatian forward Dragan Bender as the fourth overall pick, and the Minnesota Timberwolves selected Providence point guard Kris Dunn as the fifth pick.

Rounding out the top ten were Oklahoma guard Buddy Hield (No. 6), who was chosen by the New Orleans Pelicans, Kentucky guard Jamal Murray, (No. 7), who went to the Denver Nuggets, Washington forward Marquese Chriss, (No. 8) who was also chosen by the Suns, Utah center Jakob Poeltl, (No. 9) who went to the Toronto Raptors, and Australian center Thon Makon, who was drafted by the Milwaukee Bucks.

The Sacramento Kings made Chriss the eighth overall pick, though he was part of a trade with the Suns that ultimately netted the Kings the No. 13 pick (Georgios Papagiannis from Greece) and the 28th pick (Skal Labissiere, Kentucky).

NEW YORK, NY – JUNE 23: Ben Simmons walks on stage after being drafted first overall by the Philadelphia 76ers in the first round of the 2016 NBA Draft at the Barclays Center on June 23, 2016 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City.

Jeff Teague is leaving the ‘ATL’ for Indy.

The Atlanta Hawks sent Teague to the Indiana Pacers Wednesday as part of a three-team trade that includes the Utah Jazz as well.

Atlanta loses Teague, but gets the No. 12 overall pick in tomorrow’s NBA Draft from the Jazz. Utah gets George Hill from Indiana for the pick to complete the deal, according to The Vertical, which first reported the transaction.

JEFF TEAGUE HIGHLIGHTS

Teague, 27 and the focal point of the trade, averaged 15.7 points and 5.9 assists for the Hawks in 2015-2016. Hill, 30 and also a point guard, averaged 12.1 points and 3.4 assists for the Pacers this season.

It appears that both Atlanta and Indiana will emerge the victors from the deal, but the draft and subsequent 2016-2017 season will be more telling.

It was reported in recent weeks that Teague wanted out of Atlanta, selling his home and removing all remnants of Hawks allegiances from his social media pages.

With Teague moved on, German phenom Dennis Schroder will have an opportunity to step into the starting point guard role for Atlanta right away. Schroder averaged 11.1 points and 4.4 assists.

DENNIS SCHRODER ANNOUNCES HIS ARRIVAL TO NBA

With Teague joining Paul George in Indiana, the Pacers immediately strengthen their chances of making a deep run in the Eastern Conference next season.

Ben Simmons is projected by many to be the No. 1 pick in this year’s NBA Draft, and since it remains unknown which team will end up selecting in that spot, Simmons is holding off on signing a sneaker deal with sports apparel giant Nike just in case the Los Angeles Lakers choose him.

Ben Simmons Waiting On Nike Shoe Deal To See If He Gets Drafted By Lakers

The Lakers came in at No. 2 in the Draft lottery on Tuesday.

Nike is offering $7.5 million over five years with fewer performance incentives than the adidas contract structure.  The company is unwilling to change its current offer, sources stated.

Although the original strategy from Simmons and his Klutch Sports Group representation, as well as his agent Rich Paul, was thought to be a desire to sign a shoe deal prior to the draft lottery, they have now said they are not satisfied with Nike’s offer. They were hoping that if the Lakers landed the top overall pick — which they had a 19.9 percent chance of doing –€“ Nike would move closer to matching Adidas’ offer.

Simmons has a more lucrative offer on the table from Adidas, one that would pay him $10 million over five years and would include a $2 million signing bonus along with plenty of other incentives. But his representation (the same people who represent LeBron James) clearly want to seek a deal with Nike due to the existing relationship.

The 19-year-old LSU Tigers forward was also recently named Rookie of the Year.

Point guard D’Angelo Russell went to the Lakers last year as the second overall pick, and Nike upped its offer considerably to prevent Russell from signing with Adidas. Russell ended up agreeing to a deal worth $1.2 million annually.

The Draft will take place on June 23 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.

PHOTO: NASHVILLE, TN – MARCH 11: Ben Simmons #25 of the LSU Tigers dribbles the ball during the game against the Tennessee Volunteers during the quarterfinals of the SEC Basketball Tournament at Bridgestone Arena on March 11, 2016 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)