The Philadelphia 76ers began training camp on Tuesday and they did so without the services of Ben Simmons who continues his holdout as he awaits a trade from the franchise. Things have gotten ugly between the 25-year old All-Star and the organization and it has not gotten any better.
As the team convened in Camden, NJ to fully prepare for the upcoming season, they did so while having to answer questions about the latest story concerning Simmons and Joel Embiid.
Simmons believes his partnership with Embiid has run its course and it is another reason why he wants out from the team. After the team finished up practice on Tuesday, coach Doc Rivers brushed off the latest report.
“I don’t have a reaction to that because Ben’s not here,” Rivers told reporters. “I do believe at some point, he will be and if he isn’t, you got another story. I don’t get caught up in that. Right now I’m going to focus on the guys that are on the floor. I think that’s more important.”
On the flip side, this is also not the first time that the Simmons and Embiid duo has been called into question. Rivers has been looking to get rid of that narration since he came to Philadelphia. However, he might not have that chance anymore.
“This is not the first time that guys don’t think that they could play together,” he added. “This is basketball so I don’t think this is any earth-shattering thing.”
Doc Rivers: “Ben’s not here but I do believe at some point he will be.”
“This is not the first time guys didn’t think they could play together. It’s just basketball.” pic.twitter.com/3MQ2EKlEUm
— Rich Hofmann (@rich_hofmann) September 28, 2021
The Simmons saga will continue on for Sixers, but now this just adds another layer to this story as the team continues to move on without him.
This post originally appeared on Sixers Wire! Follow us on Facebook!
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