Ben Simmons clearly became a detriment to the Philadelphia 76ers’ chances of contending for an NBA title this season, which is why there has been a lot of talk about the team moving on from him. According to one report, the Sixers remain committed to Simmons and want to help him improve.
Of course, it is fair to question where the information in that report came from.
ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported on Thursday that Simmons and his agent Rich Paul met with Sixers executives this week to discuss the former No. 1 overall pick’s future with the franchise. Paul did not request a trade for his client, and sources told Wojnarowski that Philadelphia is “committed to keeping Simmons as a central piece of their franchise.”
Woj added that Simmons met with head Doc Rivers this week to discuss a plan for improving his offensive game.
Brian Windhorst of ESPN reported on Wednesday that Simmons is still expected to receive significant interest on the trade market this summer. The reporter said as many as a dozen teams could inquire about Simmons but noted that the 76ers will have to be careful with what they say publicly to avoid hurting Simmons’ trade value.
In other words, the 76ers are going to do everything they can to convince teams they are perfectly happy keeping Simmons. It’s almost impossible to believe that they are fully committed to him after he practically refused to take a shot in the playoffs. Simmons was even thrown under the bus by one of his teammates following Philadelphia’s loss to the Atlanta Hawks in Game 7 on Sunday night.
Daryl Morey knows he has to tread carefully in order to keep Simmons’ trade value intact. Simmons and Paul likely want the same thing, especially if Simmons wants out of Philly. That is why it would not be a surprise if the information Wojnarowski received about the 76ers being “committed” to Simmons came from the team, Simmons’ camp, or both.
We heard one extremely unflattering report about Simmons this week that we know did not come from Philly. If Morey wants to trade Simmons, he has to tackle the difficult task of convincing teams he doesn’t.
