LSU reels in top 10 junior Simmons

THE LIST: Class of 2015 Rivals150

If there was anybody out there still doubting LSU coach Johnny Jones' ability to lure talent to Baton Rouge, they were surely silenced on Monday.

Shortly after an unofficial visit to see Jones and the Tigers, the No. 6 player in the class of 2015 Ben Simmons announced via his twitter account that he is committing to LSU.

A native of Australia who arrived at Montverde (Fla.) Academy back in January, Simmons first earned acclaim at the 2012 Pangos All-American Camp.

It was there that the then unknown 6-foot-8 forward showed up with little fanfare and proceeded to disect all comers. During his semester at Montverde, he showed more of the same as he solidified his top 10 and five-star status in 2015.

Simmons is a stretch forward who can do a multitude of things. He shoots with range to the three point line, handles the ball very well and is quite adept at driving the baseline. He is lacking in strength, but he is quite skilled in the post where he is a competent scorer with either hand.

Make no mistake, Jones and his staff had this recruitment surrounded from the beginning. Assistant coach David Patrick served as Simmons lead recruiter and is noted for his contacts in Australia. On top of that, Patrick is Simmons' godfather so he had a long established bond with the big timer that LSU was able to capitalize on.

Simmons is just the latest highly ranked player to call it for the Tigers since Jones took the job in the spring of 2012. His first class included five-star Jarell Martin , top 40 four-star Jordan Mickey and top 70 four-star Tim Quarterman. In 2014, LSU already has top 50 prospect Elbert Robinson. Now they've kicked things off in 2015 with their best addition yet, Simmons.

No matter how anybody wants to look at things, the recruiting work being put in by Jones and his staff is 100% for real. Moving ahead, they have cemented themselves as a legitimate threat in any recruitment that they choose to become involved with.

Eric Bossi is the national basketball recruiting analyst for Rivals.com. You can click here to follow him on Twitter.

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