One of the lingering questions surrounding the Ben Simmons saga is whether one specific factor spurred his desire to get out of Philadelphia. One of his teammates has an opinion, but does not feel terribly confident about it.
Joel Embiid was asked Monday whether anything could have been done differently to avert the current Simmons situation, particularly in the moments after Philadelphia’s playoff loss to the Atlanta Hawks. Embiid could only speak to one specific thing, namely comments from coach Doc Rivers.
Embiid did, however, note the fact that Rivers had been widely supportive all season, and conceded that Simmons’ issues run “deeper” than any one thing.
Joel Embiid when asked by @MikeMiss25 whether anything could have been done differently after the Hawks series to prevent the Simmons situation:
"I mean, the only thing I can think about is the comments…But I really believe that it's really deeper than that." pic.twitter.com/UyL5MU2IEs
— Derek Bodner (@DerekBodnerNBA) February 7, 2022
Rivers infamously cast doubt on Simmons’ future as the team’s point guard following Philadelphia’s elimination from the playoffs last year. That reportedly irked Simmons and helped lead to the decay of the relationship. That did, however, mark the only real lack of confidence Rivers ever showed in Simmons, at least publicly.
Embiid himself probably helped contribute to the environment of negativity around Simmons at that time. He’s right that the issues go deeper than a couple remarks to the press, but they didn’t help things either.
Photo: Nov 27, 2019; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid (21) warms up before action against the Sacramento Kings at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
