In the latest chapter of Ben Simmons’ rocky tenure with the Philadelphia 76ers, it sounds like the team hasn’t been able to get in touch with the star point guard since the 2020-21 season ended.
“I’m not gonna write this in the story, but I’ll tell this to you guys and you guys can do what you want with it,” said NBA insider Jake Fischer during a recent podcast appearance. “They haven’t been able to really even get in touch with Ben since the season ended. Like, there was an intent to have a workout plan or whatever — like in any offseason. That’s always kind of been the case, that the Sixers haven’t been able to align with a development plan [for Ben] — that’s kind of what Yaron Weitzman wrote at Fox Sports in that big story. It just doesn’t sound like there’s ever been movement to come together on the same page to do that, and it hasn’t really worked this summer either. I think that’s not something that’s an encouraging sign for him being in Philadelphia in the future.”
Simmons is a player who many people believe has a poor work ethic. The raw talent is certainly there for the former first-round pick, but throughout his four-year NBA career, he has failed to address his weaknesses shooting the ball. Many fans believe he won’t be able to take his game to the next level until he does.
After Simmons struggled mightily in the 2021 NBA Playoffs, trade rumors started to heat up about him. It seems possible that the rumors are rubbing Simmons the wrong way and his perception of the Philadelphia organization is changing.
In the 2020-21 season, Simmons averaged 14.3 points, 7.2 rebounds and 6.9 assists per game while shooting 55.7 percent from the field. Offensively, he did most of his work as a distributor or as a finisher at the rim.
This situation will be a very intriguing one to monitor. More questions will likely come up as the story lingers. It’s possible that Simmons has played his last game as a member of the 76ers.
