Doc Rivers and the Philadelphia 76ers have already accepted they won’t have Ben Simmons on the roster for much longer. The Australian point guard made up his mind as soon as the Atlanta Hawks eliminated his team in the 2021 NBA playoff.
Ever since that moment, the relationship between the player and the franchise became worse, to the point that Simmons won’t return to Philly. He’s keen to get traded, and the team is trying to catch a big offer for him, which isn’t easy right now.
This situation leaves the Sixers with a void to fill, but they’re not panicking right now. Instead, the team will try to work things out and find a solution to that. Doc Rivers believes they can turn things around and have a nice even without Simmons on the court.
Talking about their current point guard situation, Rivers explained he’s not losing his sleep over that and will try to create the offense with the players he has right now.
“I’m fine,” Rivers said, via Justin Grasso of Sports Illustrated. “Like, if you can get one, great. I don’t worry about what we don’t have. You are talking to the wrong guy. We’re gonna win with what we have. That’s the way it is. I’ve always thought there’s a lot of guys that can play, and you figure it out. There’s a lot of teams — a lot of teams that don’t have pure point guards. You just play with the guys you have and create your offense that way.”
Even without Ben, Rivers is confident the team can have a good 2021/22 season and compete to come out of the East against the powerhouses Milwaukee Bucks and Brooklyn Nets. Without Simmons, the job will be even harder, but they’re ready to face the challenge.
Meanwhile, Philly keeps their options open. Some reports suggest they’re still trying to convince Simmons to return while others say they’re waiting for a good offer to trade him away.
