One of the biggest knocks on Ben Simmons is that he’s a star-caliber player who simply cannot handle criticism. He hasn’t played this season with the 76ers after Doc Rivers called him out following the Sixers’ playoff loss to the Atlanta Hawks. And last week, Shaquille O’Neal absolutely ripped Simmons for his absence this season.
Well, at least according to Shaq, Simmons essentially proved the Hall of Famer’s point.
In the rant on TNT’s Inside the NBA, Shaq wouldn’t call Simmons by name, describing him as “soft” and a “crybaby” who can’t take criticism. It turned out that Simmons took notice of the segment because he reached out to Shaq.
"He acting like a baby.”@Shaq went IN on Ben Simmons and says the Sixers star DM'd him mad for comments Shaq recently made on @NBAonTNT
More on #TheBigPodcast: https://t.co/v263O0hCCc pic.twitter.com/LGl9dtOYHJ
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) February 3, 2022
In the latest edition of the The Big Podcast with Shaq, O’Neal revealed that an angry Ben Simmons sent him a few direct messages to argue about what he said on Inside the NBA. Shaq wouldn’t disclose exactly what Simmons wrote but described him as “mad.”
Shaq said he told Simmons that he was leaving Joel Embiid out there without support and that he needed to play. Simmons said some things back that Shaq wouldn’t disclose, but still, it shows how Simmons remains preoccupied with what people are saying about him.
It’s the same issue that started this mess, and it doesn’t inspire confidence that Simmons will ever return to the Sixers again.