Nets star Ben Simmons has a controversial history in the NBA. Recently, one of his former teammates, Georges Niang, exposed some of that history by telling the world why he cut ties with the former No. 1 overall pick.
“He was walking around the facility, you’d be like ‘What’s up man?’ Because they were like ‘try to welcome him back’ and he’d just nod and that’s when I was like f*** this dude. Like if I get an opportunity to play against this dude I’m going to just be an a**hole.”
.@GeorgesNiang20 talks about his issues with Ben Simmons's holdout while they were teammates in Philly.
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Daryl Morey and the 76ers have always tried to do right by their stars and they did whatever they could to make it work between their star duo, Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons. On the court, it was always an awkward fit but their potential alone was enough for the 76ers to keep them together for years.
Recently, the 76ers had to endure an endless battle with Simmons and things nearly got personal. After years of failed attempts at a long playoff run, his patience wore thin with the organization and his partnership with Embiid was no longer sustainable. On his way out of the team, he burned bridges and cut ties that can never be repaired.
Simmons, 28, was drafted by the 76ers in 2016. he quickly rose to stardom in Philadelphia with averages of 15.9 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 7.7 assists per game over four seasons. Alongside Joel Embiid, he helped the 76ers finish near the top of the standings year after year and won multiple playoff series.
But after a meltdown against the Hawks in the 2021 playoffs, Simmons refused to play for the 76ers and blamed poor mental health for his inability to play. He sat out for months and didn’t think about playing until Daryl Morey finally traded him to the Nets in 2022.
The whole situation brought chaos and dysfunction to the 76ers and there is no doubt it was a major distraction to the players who were constantly asked what was going on.
In the final stretch of the ordeal, the 76ers tried to make it work with Simmons and had the players go out of their way to welcome him back on the team. Clearly, Ben wanted nothing to do with those guys and when he refused to reconcile with his teammates it was the final straw in their relationship.
To this day, Simmons has yet to regain his All-Star form and he’ll be playing for his NBA future next season with just one year left on his deal. Unless Ben can regain his confidence and become a high-impact player for the Nets, he may never get another high-value contract again in the NBA.
The 76ers, meanwhile, quickly moved on from the Simmons saga by bringing in James Harden and then Tyrese Maxey. With a star-studded core like Embiid, George, and Maxey, they are positioned to contend for a title this year as one of the top teams in the East.
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