On Friday's episode of “The Hoop Collective” podcast, host and ESPN insider Brian Windhorst pointed out the hefty fines that Philadelphia 76er Ben Simmons could be facing. As a part of his formal trade demand, Simmons recently informed the team that he will not be reporting to training camp. As this would be a violation of Simmons' contract, Windhorst (who was told by former front office executive Bobby Marks) says Simmons can face a fine of $227,000 for every work day that he doesn't show up to the Sixers' camp.
“If they wanted to fine him, for every week, he could be fined about $1.3 million,” Windhorst said. “The Simmons side has told me ‘we are prepared for that ramification.'”
Simmons won't get his first check for the 2021-22 season until Nov. 15, meaning the Sixers can't actually dock his pay until that point. However, the fines can start adding up now, meaning that at that point, they can fine him for 10 weeks' worth of pay.
Essentially, the two sides have 10 weeks to reach a resolution—either Simmons decides to play ball and show up for camp, or Philly finds a suitable trade destination. It's quite a sizable Sword of Damocles to be hanging over Simmons' head, despite Windhorst's reporting that he and his representation are unphased by it and are going to stick to their guns.
ESPN reporter Tim Bontemps reiterated on the podcast that Sixers GM Daryl Morey is willing to wait to trade Simmons until a bigger fish (i.e. Damian Lillard or Bradley Beal) becomes available. If those players are comfortable in their current roles for the time being, Morey could use the threat of this fine to at least get Simmons back on the court. It might actually be benificial for Simmons to play a few games for the Sixers; if he plays well, it could wash the taste of his terrible performance last postseason out of potential trade partners' mouths and increase his value.
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