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Throughout all the drama leading up to Ben Simmons' exit from the Philadelphia 76ers, it just felt like he was burning bridges. He had no intention of playing for the Sixers ever again and he was not afraid to make his feelings known about it.
One of the biggest storylines surrounding Simmons' ugly divorce from his former team was his relationship with Sixers superstar Joel Embiid. These two once formed one of the most terrifying partnerships in the entire league. All of a sudden, the pair was pitted against each other all over the media with several narratives emerging about their broken relationship and how this was one of the biggest factors behind Simmons' refusal to suit up for Philly.
To be quite honest, that long-drawn-out saga now feels like a lifetime away. It seems that Joel Embiid has taken on a similar perspective on the situation. In a recent interview with Chris Mannix of SI, the 28-year-old got brutally honest about his feelings towards Simmons right now:
“I don’t have any hate toward him,” Embiid admitted. “I wouldn’t mind being friends. That’s just me. I don’t care. Honestly. I respect the decision he made. I think it’s unfortunate what happened, but to me it’s whatever.”
Looks like Embiid isn't holding any grudge toward his former teammate. So much so, that he's even willing to renew whatever friendship they had prior to Simmons' messy exit. Whether he is willing to be the first one to reach out is an altogether different matter, though.
Many are under the belief that it was Embiid's comments after their season-ending loss to the Atlanta Hawks in the second round of last year's playoffs that led to Simmons' indifference. Ben's decision to pass up a wide-open layup during a crucial juncture in the ballgame was heavily criticized by the media following the loss. Even Embiid had a few things to say pertaining to the incident:
“I mean, I'll be honest,” Embiid said after the game. “I thought the turning point was when we—I don't know how to say it—but I thought the turning point was just we had an open shot and we made one free throw and we missed the other and then they came down and scored.
“We didn't get a good possession on the other end and Trae came back and he made a 3 and then from there down four, it's on me. I turned the ball over and tried to make something happen from the perimeter. But I thought that was the turning point.”
Embiid identified several instances down the stretch that ultimately led to the Sixers losing the game and thereby seeing their season come to a bitter end. However, it was the “open shot” reference that the media gravitated towards. In his mind, though, Embiid insists that his conscience is clean. He maintains that he never singled out Simmons:
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“I didn’t call out anybody,” says Embiid. “This is what (the media) does. I listed a bunch of stuff that happened. And that one little piece of it was everywhere. We couldn’t get anything going. It’s unfortunate, but if, as a player, if you want to read into that, I can’t help you.”
Simmons was obviously hurt by the criticism he received and for being pinned as the scapegoat for the Sixers' wasted season. At that point in time, more stories began emerging about how Simmons supposedly felt that his partnership with Embiid had “run its course.”
For his part, Embiid took all of that in. He even admits to believing in most of the narratives that came out.
“I read everything,” he says. “I was pissed off. There were so many times that I thought I’d really lose it.”
Embiid was eventually able to calm himself down. Throughout the ordeal, he even hoped that Simmons was going to have a change of heart. Sooner or later, the Sixers big man realized that this was just not going to happen. His mindset then shifted to what his team could get in a potential trade for his soon-to-be ex-teammate:
“I’m trying to win a championship,” Embiid said. “Whatever gets me the best chance to win a championship, that’s what I’m going to do. We needed to help him as much as possible. If he comes back, we got to take him back and try to go win a championship. If he still wants to get traded, we got to do whatever is necessary to make sure that we don’t go and trade for, I don’t know, a first-round pick, or a second-round pick, or whatever, because what does that do for me? I’m not going to be able to work with a bunch of first-round picks or second-round picks. So, to me, I always looked at the bigger picture.”
Embiid knew that “The Process” in Philly had already been fulfilled and that getting future draft picks in exchange for Simmons would be a step back in what this team was trying to achieve presently. True enough, Embiid and the Sixers got their wish. As Simmons took his talent to New York to join the Brooklyn Nets, Philly got former MVP James Harden in return as part of the deal.
As of the moment, the Sixers are the clear winners of the trade. Simmons hasn't even made his debut for the Nets while Harden has proven to be an excellent fit alongside Embiid. Simmons should eventually take the floor for his new team and we're all hoping this happens sooner rather than later. How much of a dream matchup would it be if the Sixers were to face the Nets in a seven-game series in the playoffs, right?
