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The problem with other people deciding you have massive potential is that if YOU don't reach THEIR expectations, well, then it's your fault. That's the way the cookie crumbled for Ben Simmons. And then the cookie turned into beef. Like some weird, culinary alchemy.
The problem with other people deciding you have massive potential is that if YOU don't reach THEIR expectations, well, then it's your fault. That's the way the cookie crumbled for Ben Simmons. And then the cookie turned into beef. Like some weird, culinary alchemy.
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00:00Before diving into what you can already surmise is the topic of this video, I just want to get one thing straight.
00:07Despite how it feels like it went down, Ben Simmons really, truly did not hit back at Philadelphia fans or the Sixers.
00:15Despite subs being thrown by public officials, his own teammates, his head coach, and direct vitriol from Philly Faithful, he was pretty silent.
00:25It was a one-sided beef, for the most part.
00:28That being said, what did Ben Simmons do to get such a reaction from the most passionate sports city in the United States?
00:36Well, let's all go see together.
00:41So, let's take it from the top. The 2016 NBA draft.
00:45Ben Simmons, a top prospect out of LSU, was a hole but guaranteed to be the apple of Philadelphia's eye.
00:52They had the top pick, and he was the consensus top player.
00:56But Simmons wasn't necessarily the best option for the Sixers in that draft.
01:01Brandon Ingram, more of a scorer and typical wing, could have been more their speed.
01:06There were other qualifiers around Simmons, one being that he was apparently suffering from Main Character Syndrome while with LSU.
01:14He was also not going to class, and actually became ineligible for the prestigious John R. Wooden Award despite putting up these numbers.
01:24He didn't care about that though, which probably isn't a good look to teams looking to draft you.
01:29Yet, another knock against Simmons was that his style of play didn't lead LSU to a good season.
01:36Simmons was a great defender and an elite passer.
01:39For a 6'10 guy to have such great vision is unique.
01:43For a 6'10 guy to not have a jump shot is scary.
01:46His lack of a shot, plus the Fighting Tigers' lack of scoring around Simmons, led to a lot of losses.
01:53That lack of a jumper didn't sound like an issue to then Sixers GM Brian Colangelo.
01:58Everyone knows you don't have to score to succeed in the NBA, duh.
02:03But wait, there's more.
02:05Simmons was also pretty known for just disappearing in games sometimes.
02:10This and everything else Simmons was showcasing while with LSU was immortalized in one draft profile that did not hold back on his NBA potential.
02:20Philly saw all that and said,
02:23Yeah, but what if he changes for us?
02:25And grabbed him up at one anyways.
02:28Who cares if he didn't hit the books?
02:30Neither did Carmelo Anthony, he became a star.
02:32But Simmons ended up catching the same rookie injury bug that got his soon-to-be co-star Joel Embiid.
02:40Ben came back pretty strongly the following season, playing so well he won Rookie of the Year.
02:45But even that came with an asterisk, being that he won it over quote-unquote real rookies like Donovan Mitchell and Jason Tatum.
02:53It was so contentious that he and Mitchell actually beefed.
02:56That's a different video though.
02:58It didn't matter, he had the hardware, and now he needed more.
03:01He needed to win with Philly, and not just win individual accolades.
03:06Simmons' performances, or lack thereof, in the postseason is where beef really started to brew between himself and Philly.
03:15Philadelphia is passionate about winning in a way that's hard to define on the outside looking in, but you kinda know Philly fandom when you see it.
03:25Unfortunately, Ben's style of play went completely against the grain of Philadelphia, which was only amplified in the postseason.
03:33His shot still needed work, and he still needed to find his motivation to try during big games.
03:40There's no series where this is more evident than the Sixers' battle with the Atlanta Hawks in 2021.
03:46Philly was the one seed, they were beyond dominating.
03:50Embiid and Simmons were gelling ahead of the postseason, slated to be up against less talented teams.
03:56They were given the Washington Wizards in the first round, and the Wizards showcased an interesting strategy to try and take down Simmons.
04:04Hack a Ben.
04:05The Wizards sent Simmons to the line 11 times in their one win of the series.
04:11He only managed to convert on 5 shots out of those 11 trips.
04:15The strategy was deployed in the fourth quarter by Wizards head coach Scott Brooks.
04:20Bradley Beal was responsible down the stretch for hacking Ben, leading to a very awkward conversation while Ben was at the line.
04:27Troubling that all it took was fouling to bury the Sixers in that game, but Philadelphia won the series anyway.
04:34In the second round, they faced off with the Hawks.
04:38The Hawks were up and coming with a young star in their backcourt, but truthfully not much to offer in comparison to the Sixers on paper.
04:46Despite that, Philadelphia folded.
04:49The series was pushed to 7 games, partially thanks to Trae Young averaging nearly 30 points per game, but also due to the lack of aggression from Simmons all series long.
04:59A specific moment in this series, the biggest moment many would argue, came in the fourth quarter of game 7.
05:05Score was 88-86.
05:07Philly desperately needed something from Ben here, with about 3 minutes to go.
05:11Simmons up to this point had as many points as you can count on one hand.
05:16He has the ball, and he's backing down to Nilo Gallinari, and he managed to actually spin off of Gallo, and was rewarded with a wide open look at the basket.
05:25Here it was, this was the moment that could maybe spark a win for Philly and spark some scoring for Simmons.
05:31And he passes to Matisse Theibel, not exactly a great shooter.
05:36You know the rest.
05:37This series, and this postseason in general from Simmons, was what broke the Campbells back.
05:43Doc Rivers, then the head coach of the Sixers, refused to say whether he felt he could go to Simmons as a PG on a contender.
05:50Do you think Ben Simmons can still be a point guard for a championship team like the one you guys want to become?
05:56Yeah, David, I don't know that question or the answer to that right now.
05:59Um, you know, so I don't know the answer to that.
06:03Embiid critiqued Simmons' shooting in his postgame.
06:07The bothersome traits that Simmons brought to Philly from LSU, lack of shooting, lack of aggression, lack of teamwork, had come to a head.
06:15The proof was in the stat lines, and Ben wanted out.
06:18He sat down with Top Brass prior to the start of the 21-22 season to let them know he was a goner.
06:24That wasn't welcome news for them, or for Rivers, who said he wanted Simmons back.
06:30He said his postgame comments from Game 7 were taken out of context, but the trade request was on the table after they were said and after Rivers apparently apologized for them.
06:39Rivers had even said in that same scrutinized postgame that he wanted to get back in the gym with Simmons.
06:46That's not something you say about a player you want gone, right?
06:49Philly had already tried trading Simmons, though, for James Harden.
06:52Simmons knew it and handled it well, but now he wanted the team to pull that trigger.
06:57He was willing to do whatever it took to force his way off of the team.
07:00That included not showing up to media day or to the opening of training camp.
07:05That rubbed Embiid the wrong way, especially after reports surfaced that Simmons wanted off the team because he didn't mesh well with Embiid's playing style.
07:15Simmons did finally show up after getting fined out to Wazoo for missing so much camp, but he was kicked out of practice shortly after his return for clearly not being into it.
07:25Rivers said Simmons was just being a distraction in practice, and Embiid said Ben isn't his son, so he can't be bothered to baby him.
07:33Simmons then told Philly after training camp that he wasn't planning on suiting up with them to start the season because of mental health issues.
07:41Philly had stopped fining him for missing practice while he sought help from the NBPA, but then changed their tune once he refused to share what treatment he was receiving through them and for refusing the team's help.
07:53Which like, sure, I guess from a contractual perspective I understand why that's not acceptable, but on a human level, this was a bit of a slimy thing for Philly to do.
08:03If he's seeking help and getting it, that shouldn't be an issue. Not seeking help from the very organization causing you distress seems like a no-brainer.
08:12To then throw fines at Simmons just comes off as antagonistic, and Simmons' agent, Rich Paul, felt the same.
08:19Some speculated that Ben just couldn't take the heat of playing for the city of brotherly hate- sorry, city of brotherly love.
08:27Others genuinely thought he was faking it, going so far as to pen entire op-eds about Simmons using it as an excuse as he was seeking a lucrative trade and he was seeking a way out to protect his pockets while he sat out.
08:40Eventually, finally, Ben was shipped to Brooklyn for James Harden, the OG trade idea that kind of set the tone for Simmons' disgruntled attitude towards the Sixers in the first place and before the infamous Non shot.
08:54And Bade reacted by getting real about his view on Ben's motivations as a player with Philly.
09:00Also just so happened to tweet this after the trade. He claimed he was just admiring the guy pictured and his fit, but it doesn't feel like someone by the name of Troel and Bade would have done this by accident.
09:13Simmons said he was just happy to be happy again after the trade and that while he didn't feel like mental health had a lot to do with why he requested it, he was just happy to be moving on.
09:24Ben's first few years in Brooklyn were odd. He was injured for a lot of it and that was with a back injury being the main culprit. The Beard experience in Philadelphia was short-lived, exciting, but ultimately a waste of time.
09:37Harden actually ended up pushing his way off the team, a la Ben.
09:41When the Sixers and Nets have linked up, it's been what you'd expect it to be. Specifically, it has sounded how you'd expect it to sound.
09:48In one contest, MB literally had to ask the crowd prior to the game to chill out on Ben and to treat him like a brother.
09:55That quick PSA came after Simmons was booed coming out of the tunnel for warm-ups with his new Nets team and after Simmons threw a dunk down as his first warm-up shot.
10:06Simmons was even the butt of the joke from Philadelphia public officials after being dealt. Here's State Representative Tariq Khan on the Sixers' biggest mistakes.
10:15This is just a litany of bad ideas from the 76ers. Like passing over Jason Tatum, hiring Doc Rivers, and drafting Ben Simmons.
10:29Ben has said as recently as 2023 that he'd be down to take another crack at helping Philly.
10:35Those warm, fuzzy feelings Simmons has towards Philadelphia aren't mutual, maybe because he had a parting jab to share after getting traded.
10:44With what was perhaps his most direct beef moment with Philly, he posted a photo of himself at home enjoying a glass of wine while watching on his big-ass TV the Sixers being blown out by the Boston Celtics.
10:58Fans called him out for watching the game from the couch, but the damage had been done. Not bad for your one direct hit.
11:04Embiid's forgiven Ben. Ben's forgiven Ben. And forgiven Philly. Philly will never let him live it down.
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