Ben Simmons was once again greeted with loud boos by Philadelphia 76ers fans when the Brooklyn Nets played in the City of Brotherly Love on Saturday night. Simmons was asked about the boos after the game, and the three-time All-Star said he finds them to be a bit funny now.
“This is what? My second (or) third time back, so it’s a little different now,” Simmons said. “It’s funny to me. I got grown men pissed off and yelling at me. I get to go home after this, get the win. For me, I’m all about winning, so come here, do our job, and get to go home. But it’s fun, I enjoy that. It’s not that deep, it’s sports but it comes with it, so I enjoy it.”
Simmons was getting booed even during warmups and hilariously taunted the crowd by asking them to get louder. They obliged when he checked into the game in the first quarter.
This was the third time Simmons had played in Philadelphia since his messy exit in 2022. The Australian had asked to be traded in the offseason in 2021 following that infamous playoff series against the Atlanta Hawks. He did not show up for training camp to force an exit and then missed the Sixers’ preseason as well.
Simmons then didn’t play during the regular season and eventually got his wish when he got traded to the Nets. While time tends to heal all wounds, I’d say fans in Philadelphia are probably going to boo him for the rest of his career. They’re not the types to let go, and the 27-year-old can expect boos when these teams meet in Philadelphia on April 14th.
As for this game, the Nets blew out the 76ers 136-121 to improve to 20-28 on the season. Simmons had a solid showing, with 9 rebounds and 5 assists in 14 minutes, as he won in Philadelphia for the first time since his exit.
Joel Embiid Spoke On The Partnership With Ben Simmons
We unfortunately weren’t able to get another installment of Simmons vs. Joel Embiid here, as the reigning MVP is out with an injury. Embiid and Simmons famously fell out toward the end of the latter’s tenure in Philadelphia, and it was also reported that the two never really got along. Earlier this season, Embiid spoke about his partnership with Simmons.
“I’ve always been one of those people that didn’t believe he needed a jumper like he was so good, he’s just a monster…. almost as fast as you (Tyrese Maxey). Freaking monster, strong, I never actually believed he needed a jumper. I just believed that, you know, if he could find a way to get his free throws to 75-80% that would have changed everything… I think that’s the perfect match… I think that’s the one that got away. I just hate the fact that the way things happened.”
They both probably wish the situation had been handled differently. Simmons and Embiid were supposed to lead the 76ers to the promised land, but their time together is now looked back upon as somewhat of a disappointment.
There was so much promise there, but the 76ers would never even make it to the Conference Finals in the Simmons-Embiid era. We’ll never know for sure just what heights they could have hit had they stuck together.
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