Philadelphia 76ers head coach Doc Rivers is singing the praises of Ben Simmons.
Stopped on the streets of Beverly Hills, California, earlier this week by TMZ, Rivers offered nothing but effusive praise for the embattled Aussie point guard.
“Ben’s great,” Rivers told TMZ. “I want him back. He’s terrific. He’ll be great. … I think he doesn’t need a lot of fixing. He’s gonna be great for us. He’ll be great.”
Simmons enjoyed a solid 2020-21 regular season, averaging 14.3 points, 7.2 rebounds and 6.9 assists and earning an All-Star selection. The playoffs were another story, of course, as Simmons’ struggles from the free-throw line began to undermine his entire game.
On the surface, Rivers’ comments seem to indicate that he doesn’t want to trade Simmons. Still, we should take what Rivers has to say with a grain of salt. He knows the worst thing he could do to Simmons’ confidence — or potential trade value — would be to criticize him publicly.
But at the same time, it must be encouraging for Simmons to hear words of support and encouragement from his head coach.
For now, we’ll keep monitoring the rumor mill for potential trades involving Simmons.
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