The 2021-22 NBA season was certainly one to forget for three-time All-Star Ben Simmons.
He sat out the entire first portion of the season when he was a member of the Philadelphia 76ers, and he then proceeded to sit out the rest of the regular season, the play-in tournament and the playoffs as a member of the Brooklyn Nets.
There were rumors that Simmons was going to suit up for the Nets in the playoffs, but that never came to fruition. In fact, according to a recent report, Simmons left the team’s group chat after the team asked him to play in its must-win Game 4 against the Boston Celtics.
Simmons reportedly responded by leaving the group chat entirely.
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“They’re having a team chat before Game 4, thinking he’s going to play against the Boston Celtics,” NBA insider Ric Bucher said during a recent television appearance. “From what I’m told, Ben just left the chat. They asked him, ‘Are you going to play?’ Ben left the chat. Like he didn’t even answer the question, just left the chat. And K.D. (Kevin Durant) is like, ‘This is what I signed up for? This is who I’m playing with?’”
Of course, this is incredibly disturbing to hear for Nets fans. Simmons has now formed a reputation of being a wholly unpredictable player that teammates simply cannot depend on.
He was run out of the city of Philadelphia for quitting on the team. It now seems as though he quit on his Nets teammates as well.
While he’s got the physical ability to be a true star in the NBA, he seems to lack a lot of the mental fortitude necessary to be successful.
Hopefully for Simmons, he can enter the 2022-23 NBA season with a newfound sense of interest in and dedication for the game of basketball. If he can’t do that, then his future in the league may become quite murky in the months ahead.
