The Philadelphia 76ers were at the point where they pretty much knew what their team was going to look like. They have a star big man in Joel Embiid and they surrounded him with a bunch of shooters in order to run the offense smoothly as they moved on from a certain point gaurd.
Then, that 3-time All-Star showed up on Monday and now they have more questions to answer.
Ben Simmons ended his holdout when he returned to the city on Monday during the team’s preseason matchup with the Brooklyn Nets and then he met with coach Doc Rivers and president Daryl Morey on Tuesday to take his physical. Once he clears the NBA’s COVID protocols on Friday, he will be reintegrated with the team and they move forward until Simmons is moved or if he commits to the team.
Rivers already mentioned that he is not ruled out for games, but how do the players feel after a very rough and tumultuous summer?
“It doesn’t matter to us at this point,” said veteran Danny Green. “We just want everybody to come here, show up, and do their jobs. I’m not asking him to do anything different than he normally does. Just show up to work and do what you normally do for us.”
What Simmons normally does for the Sixers is provide elite playmaking and elite defense to help the team out on the floor. For Philadelphia, they just want him back out there and helping the team move forward if he does show up.
“What he normally does, we’re very effective,” Green continued. “We’re very good at it. We’re the No. 1 team in the East. We’re not asking him to shoot jump shots. Just come in, be a pro, do your job, and that’s what we expect of him. If he apologizes, cool, but when you work with somebody every day, you don’t expect an apology from people not showing up whether it’s family issues or sickness or whatever it may be. They come in and do their job.”
Despite his return, it is widely speculated that Simmons still wants out. The thinking is he is showing up just to avoid losing any more of his money so at this point, it will be more about his actions and what he does when he is allowed to be back with the team.
“I already know the deal,” said Seth Curry. “I know his reasoning and what he wants to happen and I’ll be able to see once he steps on the floor, where his head’s at. I don’t feel like he needs to explain anything to me. He’s a grown man. He can do whatever he wants. Just when you step on that floor, the goal should be to win so we’ll see what happens.”
Seth Curry gives his thoughts on the Ben Simmons situation #Sixers pic.twitter.com/Kglbj0PLZS
— Ky Carlin (@Ky_Carlin) October 13, 2021
On the flip side, the Sixers have maintained that they want him back and they want him to play and continue to grow as a player with them. As things move forward, it remains to be seen how the players will react to having him out there.
“We’ve expressed that multiple times that we want him back, we want him with us until he shows up,” Green added. “I hear the same news you guys here. I haven’t seen him. When he’s in the building, we’ll acclimate him appropriately.”
As for Curry, he is focusing on himself at the moment.
“The same thing I say every time,” he stated. “I’m just out here focusing on what I need to do every day. Work hard, whoever’s in the gym, show up, and work and try to get better and try to win games on that day. If he’s here, he’s a part of the team, if he’s not, then we gotta keep it moving business as usual.”
This post originally appeared on Sixers Wire! Follow us on Facebook!
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