It seems like a day doesn’t go by without some Ben Simmons drama.
The former first-overall pick is determined to get out of the Philadelphia 76ers, regardless of how badly his teammates want him to come back.
Embiid has repeatedly said that he wants to continue playing with Ben Simmons and that he thinks they’re championship material together. But that feeling may not be mutual after all.
According to Sam Amick of The Athletic, Simmons reportedly doesn’t want to play with Simmons anymore as he feels like it hurts his game:
“Yet of all the problem areas to explore, there’s none more unyielding and impossible to ignore than this: People who have intimate knowledge of how he sees this situation continue to insist that he’s done playing with Embiid. There’s nothing personal about this choice, it seems, but the 25-year-old Simmons has clearly decided that his career is better off without Embiid blocking the runways in the paint that he so badly needs to succeed,” said Amick.
“As he sees it, sources say, the organization’s choice to build its basketball ecosystem around Embiid’s style simply isn’t conducive to the way he needs to play. So while Embiid insisted to reporters on Monday that he wants Simmons back, this much is clear: The feeling is not mutual,” he concluded.
It seems like there’s just no way to change Simmons’ mind on this subject. He simply doesn’t want to play a single minute for the Philadelphia 76ers again and doesn’t mind losing a lot of money to get a trade done.
The Sixers will need to make a decision pretty soon. His trade value continues to drop by the day, but having a player who refuses to show up isn’t good for the locker room, the organization, the fans, or anyone.
