The Philadelphia 76ers and 3-time All-Star Ben Simmons have gone back and forth so much since their Game 7 loss back on June 20 and the saga took another turn on Tuesday.
Simmons is reportedly still upset at the comments made by both Joel Embiid and coach Doc Rivers for the perceived blame after a poor playoff performance in 2021. Simmons received a lot of criticism for not dunking the ball late against the Atlanta Hawks and he also took a lot of blame due to his poor foul shooting.
Simmons has yet to play for the Sixers now 50 games into the 2021-22 season and with the latest report, Rivers responded by almost laughing at it.
Rivers talked to Tom Moore of the Bucks County Courier Post and said:
“That’s the first time I’ve ever heard that,” Rivers told the Bucks County Courier Times, part of the USA TODAY Network, on Tuesday afternoon. “There’s nobody that’s been more supportive than me. I have a tape someone sent me of almost an hour of me over and over (praising Simmons). You heard me last year every day.
“It’s all posturing. That’s why you haven’t heard me – I don’t get involved in all that stuff. I’ll leave that up to the front office and Ben’s camp. I’m staying out of that part. But, listen, some of this stuff I laugh at and I feel bad. I think Ben’s a good kid. I want Ben to do well.”
“I always have supported Ben,” Rivers said. “I want him to do well. It’s just the excuses and all that stuff. One of the things I tell all my players is that respect is a two-way street, especially these young guys. You can’t expect to ignore us or not listen and then want us to do something different to you. You have to respect each other to be successful in life.”
Rivers is right when he said he supported and praised Simmons throughout this entire time as coach of the Sixers. Plenty of times, Rivers could have criticized Simmons for his poor foul shooting or not taking the easy jump shot or any other valid point he could make, but he didn’t.
Instead, Rivers decided to focus on the great things Simmons does. He focused on his elite defense and his elite playmaking and the impact he can make on the game without having to score a ton of points.
This saga isn’t going to end any time soon even with the Feb. 10 trade deadline approaches for the Sixers.
This post originally appeared on Sixers Wire! Follow us on Facebook!
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