Doc Rivers had a long talk with Ben Simmons before Sixers traded him

Doc Rivers said he had a long talk with Ben Simmons before the Philadelphia 76ers traded him.

The saga going on between Ben Simmons and the Philadelphia 76ers has been a long one. It had been going on since the team’s Game 7 loss to the Atlanta Hawks back in June as that was followed by plenty of trade rumors before Simmons formally requested a trade in late August.

Simmons then held out from the team as he did not even report to the Sixers until Oct. 11, was thrown out of practice the eve before opening night, and he did not suit up for the Sixers at all during their 2021-22 season as he claimed mental health issues.

It was obvious that he had no intention of playing for the Sixers ever again and that this was going to drag on if the Sixers didn’t trade him. Finally, they were able to send him to the Brooklyn Nets in a deal that netted them their guy in James Harden.

As the saga is finally over, coach Doc Rivers is just happy that it is over.

“I’m glad it’s behind us,” said Rivers. “Yeah, we had a long talk.”

As far as how the conversation went, Rivers understandably did not go into the details as he gave a quick and short response to it.

“It was a great conversation,” he said succinctly.

The Simmons saga is clearly something the Sixers will like to leave behind as they move forward with a new era as Harden and Joel Embiid look to lead the way toward a championship.

This post originally appeared on Sixers Wire! Follow us on Facebook!

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