Ben Simmons has apparently seen all of your posts on social media, and he is not too pleased with them.
The Brooklyn Nets forward Simmons spoke this week to Brian Lewis of the New York Post. During the interview, Simmons expressed displeasure with one particular criticism levied against him — that he is supposedly stealing money from the Nets (by collecting on his big contract while barely playing).
“People make comments saying I’m robbing. No,” said Simmons. “When I got that contract, I was playing at a super high level. Unfortunately, I had injuries. But for somebody to say that, it’s disrespectful.
“People can say what they want to say,” said Simmons. “They’ve got to live with it. At the end of the day it all catches up with you.”
For what it’s worth, Simmons, a former No. 1 overall pick, signed a five-year, $177 million max extension with the 76ers back in 2019 (taking him through the 2024-25 season). He then proceeded to make two straight NBA All-Star teams as well as two straight All-Defensive teams and was a nightly threat for a triple-double.
But Simmons would then hold out for the entire 2021-22 season because of a desire for a trade as well as a cited back injury. Meanwhile, the Nets, who traded for Simmons in 2022 and thus absorbed his big contract, have only gotten 58 total games played out of Simmons in almost three full years due to his continued back problems and other injuries.
At the same time, Simmons has collected roughly $106.3 million in the last three seasons and is due to earn another $40.3 million this season before his contract finally (mercifully) expires. As for Simmons’ Nets career averages, they sit at a miserable 6.7 points per game (though with 6.7 rebounds and 6.0 assists per game as well).
Thus, it is totally fair to criticize Simmons for failing badly to live up to his giant contract. Though Simmons does appear to be dealing with a legitimate chronic back issue, it also doesn’t help that he has also had reported attitude issues through it all (with some on the Nets reportedly having questioned his passion for the game in the past).
