Ben Simmons has drawn the ire of many NBA fans and media members over the years. While he seemingly once displayed the potential of a superstar, Simmons has struggled to stay on the court as a result of mental and physical troubles with the Philadelphia 76ers and Brooklyn Nets. And one of Simmons' most vocal critics is none other than Stephen A. Smith, who continued to go after Simmons on his podcast recently.
“They talk about mental health and mental illness, and it’s a legit thing in this world. I do not want to hear that about Ben Simmons,” Smith said. “It was no mental problems when it came time to cash the checks. It was no mental problems when you were sitting on the bench in street clothes trying to look like Zoolander, the modern-day male model, with your Cartier shades or anything else that you were rocking.”
Since Simmons infamously passed up a layup or dunk in the fourth quarter of Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals in 2021, he has played just 67 games. He sat out the entire 2021-22 season as a result of a holdout with the 76ers and then a back injury with the Nets, which Smith referenced.
“You wanted to do everything but play,” Smith said. “Treating playing basketball like somebody was asking you to get on the front line of a war, but never, ever, ever failing to pick up your check. Ben Simmons severely disrupted the Philadelphia 76ers franchise, and the same can be said for what he’s done in Brooklyn. He is an absolute mess, and if I saw him. I’ll tell him to his face.”
Ben Simmons' career tailspin
The No. 1 overall selection in the 2016 NBA Draft by the Philadelphia 76ers, Ben Simmons' NBA career got off to an unfortunate start as he missed his entire first season in the league with a foot injury. He returned the following year and won Rookie of the Year after averaging 15.8 points, 8.1 rebounds, 8.2 assists, and 1.7 steals per game while playing in all but one regular-season contest.
Simmons remained relatively healthy and available the next three seasons, during which he earned back-to-back-to-back All-Star honors, as well as All-Defensive First Team twice and All-NBA Third Team in 2019-20. While the 76ers failed to make it past the second round, Simmons established himself as one of the premier defenders and playmakers in the league, having finished in the top four in Defensive Player of the Year voting in 2020 and 2021.
However, Simmons' greatest deficiency has always been his shooting, which became glaringly obvious during the 2021 NBA Playoffs. While Simons had always been an average-to-poor free-throw shooter, his percentage at the line tanked during the postseason in 2021 — after shooting 65.3% on FTs in the playoffs previously, Simmons made just 34.2% of his free-throw attempts in the 2021 playoffs.
With the weakness apparent to everyone, Simmons began to be targeted in a ‘Hack-a-Simmons' strategy, which seemed to lead to Simmons shying away from putting himself in position to be fouled, most notably in a crucial moment in Game 7 vs. the Hawks.
The 76ers' brutal playoff loss to Atlanta was followed by then-Philadelphia head coach Doc Rivers saying that he did not “know the answer to that” when asked if Simmons could be a point guard of a title-winning team. A few months later, Simmons requested a trade and threatened to sit out to ensure a trade out of Philadelphia. The 76ers held firm and fined Simmons millions for missing training camp. Simmons eventually returned to the team in October 2021 before being thrown out of practice by Rivers and suspended a game by the team.
After Simmons claimed he was missing games and practice due to mental health issues, the 76ers lessened but did not stop fining him. The two sides agreed to a settlement for the millions of dollars in withheld salary in August 2022, six months after the 76ers finally traded Simmons to the Brooklyn Nets in a deal also involving James Harden.
Simmons herniated a disk in his back after being traded to Brooklyn, and while it appeared he would return during the Nets' first-round playoff series vs. the Boston Celtics, Simmons was held out of the four games and underwent back surgery shortly thereafter. He has struggled with various back and knee ailments since, including a nerve impingement in his back that led to a surgery this March.
The result of the injuries and mental health issues has been a severe decline in production and efficiency for Simmons, who averaged 16.9 points, 8.6 rebounds, 8.2 assists, and 1.8 steals per 36 minutes with the 76ers. In his 67 total games for Brooklyn, Simmons is averaging 9.4 points, 9.4 rebounds, 8.4 assists, and 1.6 steals per 36. His free-throw percentage has also sank below 50% to 43.1% with the Nets.
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