The drama between Ben Simmons of Melbourne, Australia and the 76ers organization is continuing. After initially not reporting to training camp on time, and then deciding to report with Philadelphia after all, the 76ers have suspended Simmons one game for conduct detrimental to the team and fined him $1.4 million according to Michael Chandler of The Score.
Simmons was reportedly asked to participate in a defensive drill several times by 76ers head coach Doc Rivers on Tuesday. When Simmons refused, Rivers asked Simmons to leave.
The tension between Simmons and Rivers at the moment is profound, and appears to be rising. Prior to Simmons reporting to Philadelphia, Rivers compared dealing with the Simmons camp to dealing with “Donald Trump” according to Ricky O’Donnell of SB Nation.
Rivers meanwhile was leaning towards not playing Simmons in the 76ers opening game on Wednesday against the New Orleans Pelicans before the suspension. That is because Rivers did not believe Simmons was in “game shape” yet according to Field Level Media.
Last season Simmons played his fourth season in Philadelphia. He averaged 14.3 points per game, 7.2 rebounds per game, and 6.9 assists per game. The three-time all-star who is considered one of the best Australians to ever play in the NBA, also had a field goal percentage of .557, a three-point percentage of .300, and a free throw percentage of .613 in 2020-21.
However it was Simmons’ poor play for Philadelphia in the 2021 NBA Playoffs that seemed to instigate the friction. Simmons only had 19 points in Philadelphia’s final three games against the Atlanta Hawks, and his decision-making on the court was questioned by teammates.
This is not the first time we have seen friction between player and coach in practice in Philadelphia. There was a famous feud between Allen Iverson and Larry Brown in 2002, where Brown felt Iverson was not trying hard in practice. Iverson then went on a rant where he said “practice” 22 times, and stated, “it’s practice,” and “it is only practice.”
