No matter what he does, the Philadelphia 76ers aren’t giving in on Ben Simmons’ desire to be traded away. The team remains firm that they want to get the maximum return for the Australian player, nothing less.
After the most recent events of this saga, the Sixers decided to suspend the player for one game. He refused to participate in defensive drills earlier today, which prompted head coach Doc Rivers to eject him from practice.
Joel Embiid had big things to say about Simmons, pretty much explaining he’s done trying to convince Ben to stay with the team and commit to the project.
“At this point I don’t care about that man, honestly. He does whatever he wants. That’s not my job. I’m only focused on trying to make the team better, win some games, try to lead the other guys that we have here. The chemistry has been excellent despite everything that’s been happening the last few months. So yeah, like I said, I don’t really care.”
The team isn’t done punishing Simmons, and according to Adrian Wojnarowski, they fined Simmons $1.4 million for missing four preseason games (360K each). Plus, he missed team practices, meetings and more.
The 76ers have fined Ben Simmons $1.4M for his absence from four preseason games (360K each) and levied numerous team fines for missed practices, on-court workouts and meetings. He hasn’t earned any money since returning to the team on October 11.
ESPN Sources: The 76ers have fined Ben Simmons $1.4M for his absence from four preseason games (360K each) and levied numerous team fines for missed practices, on-court workouts and meetings. He hasn’t earned any money since returning to the team on October 11.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) October 19, 2021
Moreover, Woj adds that the team doesn’t plan on trading him for role players. The Sixers’ front office wants to get the maximum benefit from this unfortunate situation and remain championship contenders even without Simmons.
Sixers' approach on a trade has remained steadfast: They won't move Simmons for role players — only a player who'll help keep them a championship contender. That hasn't changed. For now, no one should expect a speedy resolution on Simmons' future in Philadelphia. https://t.co/YUdkseUZOo
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) October 19, 2021
However, that wouldn’t be the case right now. Per Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated, one league executive claims nobody wants to get Simmons right now, so you know his trade value is really low.
Texting with a league exec who is monitoring the Simmons situation: "When sh– goes south, this is how he reacts? Who wants a guy like that?"
— Chris Mannix (@SIChrisMannix) October 19, 2021
It’s unclear how this situation will end, but we can tell that neither party is giving up. Unlike Kyrie Irving, Simmons looks ready to lose money if that means he can head out of Philly soon.
Time will tell how this situation plays out, but things are very heated in Philadelphia right now. If somebody hoped to see Simmons making amends with the team, that’s not happening. He’s keen to leave and it wouldn’t be crazy to say the Sixers are now on the same page.
