Ben Simmons called out his Philadelphia 76ers after their home loss to the Atlanta Hawks on Friday night.
The Sixers fell at home to Atlanta 123-121 despite a triple-double from Simmons, who had 23 points, 10 rebounds and 15 assists. Afterwards, Simmons said the team was not physical enough and not taking things personally enough when scored upon.
"I think we were just too soft. I just don’t think we are physical enough. I think defensively, we are not taking it personal enough when guys score on us. It should be a pride thing. When someone scores on you, you should be frustrated every time." – Simmons after loss to Hawks
— Jessica Camerato (@JessicaCamerato) January 12, 2019
Philly was outrebounded 44 to 30 by Atlanta. Jimmy Butler said the Hawks came out from the start and dictated the game.
Simmons’ criticism of his teammates seems to have been heeded, because Butler specifically noted that he didn’t care for the term “soft.”
Perhaps the criticism will motivate the Sixers, especially now that they’ve lost two in a row to lottery teams.
