Getty Ben Simmons #10 of the Brooklyn Nets.
There is no love lost between Brooklyn Nets star Ben Simmons and his former team, the Philadelphia 76ers who traded him last offseason after he sat out the 2022 season with a back injury and mental health issues. But since then, things have gotten petty at times with both sides taking subliminal and even direct shots at one another.
The latest example came as Simmons posted a pick of the Sixers’ blowout 112-88 loss to the Boston Celtics in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals on May 14.
Philly went from being tied at 55-all to trailing by 30 points at one point in the second half.
The game featured a suboptimal game from both of Philly’s top stars, each of whom has taken their fair share of shots at the Nets and/or Simmons in the aftermath of the trade as well.
Embiid pointed to Simmons’ passing on a dunk over Atlanta Hawks star Trae Young in the 2021 Eastern Conference Semi-Finals as a turning point for the series and said that winning was not his former teammates’ top priority.
“It’s unfortunate winning was not the biggest factor,” Embiid said, per Tom Moore of the Bucks County Courier Times in February of 2022. “It’s unfortunate that for him having his own team and, I guess, being a star was more his priorities.”
Embiid – who was playing through a sprained LCL – finished third on the Sixers with 15 points adding eight rebounds, two blocks, and one assist. He had made a note of how difficult things were for Nets swingman Mikal Bridges when Philly focused their efforts on him in their opening-round sweep of the Nets.
It was a bit of a role reversal as Embiid found himself stymied by 36-year-old Al Horford, who was credited with three blocks against Embiid – the 2023 KIA NBA MVP.
Harden, who Embiid hyped for his MVP credentials and who took a victory lap when the Nets traded Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, was even worse in the contest. He had nine points, seven assists, six rebounds, two steals, and one block. But Harden went just 3-for-11 from the floor including 1-for-5 from beyond the arc while also turning the ball over five times.
It was surely not the ending the Sixers – who had a 3-2 lead in the series – wanted with reports Harden could bolt this summer.
Another Ben Simmons Antagonist Comes Up Short
One of Simmons’ more vocal critics was Sixers forward Georges Niang who had said that the formers’ constant absence was holding the team back.
“Ben Simmons kind of handicapped us at the beginning of last year, Niang said during a live appearance on-location for the ‘John Kincaide Show’ on 97.5 The Fan on February 24. “Last year was difficult because you didn’t know who you had…Now, it’s just like…you know who you’re going into war with every single night.”
Niang found himself in the spotlight for the wrong reason in Game 7.
“I don’t think it was purposely done to hurt Jaylen,” Niang said, per Ky Carlin of Sixers Wire. “I think these things happen over the course of the game. He came to the bench and if it looked like I was holding him back to get back on defense, that wasn’t my intention.”
Niang finished with zero points, recording one block while seeing fewer than four minutes of floor time.
Brown was not pleased with the double-technical verdict.
Of course, Simmons is not exactly coming off the best showing of his career this past season either averaging 6.9 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 6.1 assists while also lacking aggression on offense before being shut down for the season.
Ben Simmons’ International Future Up in the Air
Simmons appeared in just 42 games during the regular season before being shut down with back inflammation. While a setback, it is along the expected timeline for a full recovery from the microdiscectomy he underwent in May of 2022, But it does seem a once-lost connection could be re-established as Simmons says he is open to suiting up for his native Australia for the first time since he was 16 years old.
“I’m currently rehabilitating my back injury and putting my full effort and focus towards that,” Simmons told James McKern of The Herald Sun. “I love what [Boomers head coach Brian] Goorjian is building with the Boomers and I look forward to being a part of the program in the future.”
The feeling is mutual.
“We’ve made a spot for him if he’s available by the time of the Cairns camp,” said Goorjian, per McKern. “He definitely wants to be a part of this and is working right now to get healthy…The communication’s been good, he’s in that frame of mind of wanting to be a part of this…He’s just trying to get healthy.”
