Simmons on Sixers: “I was in a difficult position mentally and nobody supported me”

Ben Simmons decided to add another episode to his rivalry with the Sixers. More than a year after his trade request, months-long feud, mental health issues he cited and eventual trade with the Nets last February, the Australian spoke for the first time publicly on the matter. And he said a lot.

Simmons appeared on former teammate JJ Reddick’s podcast. And although the conversation had started with apotheosis and boos from Sixers fans, there was no apotheosis, just boos, when the conversation turned to the club itself.

Asked about the team’s situation, Simmons didn’t mince words, directly attacking how the Sixers were handling the mental health issues he raised. “I was in a really bad position and thought I’d try to catch up with the rest, but there were other things that didn’t help. And that’s all I wanted: help” The Nets guard first explained, to ensure… continuity:

“I didn’t feel supported by my coaches or teammates. I won’t name all my teammates because there are great players at Nomad who have approached me and are still my friends. But I didn’t feel supported and it was a difficult time for me.”

Simmons even referenced the scene with the penalty handed to him by the Sixers when Doc Rivers kicked him out of first practice: “I spoke to Rivers before practice and told him I wasn’t mentally ready and asked him to understand. I tried to tell him before training and he decided he was going to take me to training anyway.

So he told me to lie down on the floor for an exercise and I looked at him. We were in the first minute of practice and he said ‘Ben, come in’. So I thought nobody does that. He did it on purpose. And that’s how I felt. That everyone was trying to annoy me. I was penalized for not lifting weights and being one of the strongest players on the whole team. So they punished me for small things. Everything was just set up.”

Concluding, Simmons emphasized: “Obviously I wasn’t handling things right, but neither was the team handling it right, especially those in power.”