Simmons Prediction Thread

[FNG]

I've been solidly on the Simmons train since their final game in the playoffs, but I'm mixed at best now. I recognize that nobody is very likable in this Philly drama, but I'm quite disappointed in Ben's behavior at practice his first few days. Carrying a cell phone in your pocket...really? And whether you like Doc or not, any one of us would have suspended a player who refused to participate in defensive drills. Ben's immaturity has drastically reduced what I'm willing to give up now, and what I'm willing to give up isn't likely to be of any interest to Morey. I would probably accept a Beasley/Jaden package and would consider a straight up deal for Dlo, but I'm just not as excited about Ben as I was before and also don't see Morey accepting either deal. I have no idea how this will end up, but it certainly is a shit show right now.

FNG - Glad to see you come around a bit and temper your Simmons crush. :) Ben's recent behavior in practice hasn't altered my view at all on the extent of my interest in trading for Simmons. Practice? We're talking about Practice! Not a game, Practice! Sorry, I digress. But seriously, I've had two reservations about about acquiring Simmons - (1) his poor perimeter and free-throw shooting, and (2) his attitude issues reflected in his reported failure to work on his shot and refusal to follow directives from his coaches to shoot more. Ben is a guy who appear to do what he wants to do, which is OK only to a point in a team sport like basketball. He strikes me as a bit of a loner who isn't particularly very relatable or coachable. What he's been doing recently in practice isn't a big deal to me. Morey, Rivers and Embiid had created this mess and Ben's response isn't all that unreasonable.

I still recognize and respect Ben's talent, which is why I've always been ok with the idea of dealing DLO straight up for Simmons and possibly including a couple 2nd-round picks or one future unprotected 1st for him. But I wouldn't deplete our bank of future assets to get him or give up a promising very high upside talent like McDaniels to get him. And I wouldn't trade a essential culture-changer like Beverley to get him either. If I were in Gupta's shoes, at this point I'd move on and forget about Simmons unless Morey called me. Instead, I'd focus on adding a quality big to the roster via free agency or through a trade that wouldn't involve any core players or valuable future assets.

I've moved to almost exactly where you are, Lip, but for different reasons. I will never question the on-court effort of any player who is the consensus best defender in the league, because elite defense is a combination of size, athleticism, smarts and effort. And unlike most here, I have no problems with Ben's play on the offensive side of the ball. His career ORtg of 113 is better than any current guy on our roster other than Towns. Yes, he is a reluctant shooter from the outside, but he plays to his strengths and distributes and scores in a very efficient manner.

For me it's all about how poorly he has behaved this week. His immaturity in how he has handled this shit show of a situation has been surprising to me, and it makes me question his character. Don't get me wrong- I would jump at a deal like the one you're describing because I think a team built around KAT, Ben, Ant and Jaden could win 50 games. And I'd be in full rube mode if we somehow got Ben for a relatively small price tag. It's just that DLo's strong preseason and Ben's immaturity have moved my mood a little.

[Q12543 [enjin:6621299]]

I remember when the Harden situation came up with Houston and I wanted so badly for him to wallow in uncertainty and unhappiness. That's mostly because I hate his game and stupid beard, but it's also because I think some of these star players need to get their wings clipped a bit so that bad behavior isn't rewarded.

If I'm being consistent, I should probably feel the same way about this situation with Ben. Now in his case, there is definitely a bit more balance here in that he was not treated well by fans and his own coach after last year's playoffs. So I get holding out and refusing to play, but then just stick to that and don't report - take your lumps, including the lost salary. But instead, he reports to the team and acts out like a child.....yuck.

Bottom line....I kinda hope this thing drags out uncomfortably long for both player and franchise and makes all parties involved miserable as hell.

[thedoper]

I remember when the Harden situation came up with Houston and I wanted so badly for him to wallow in uncertainty and unhappiness. That's mostly because I hate his game and stupid beard, but it's also because I think some of these star players need to get their wings clipped a bit so that bad behavior isn't rewarded.

If I'm being consistent, I should probably feel the same way about this situation with Ben. Now in his case, there is definitely a bit more balance here in that he was not treated well by fans and his own coach after last year's playoffs. So I get holding out and refusing to play, but then just stick to that and don't report - take your lumps, including the lost salary. But instead, he reports to the team and acts out like a child.....yuck.

Bottom line....I kinda hope this thing drags out uncomfortably long for both player and franchise and makes all parties involved miserable as hell.

You're in Philly right? What has the local talk radio vibe been like? Insane I am sure.

[Q12543 [enjin:6621299]]

I remember when the Harden situation came up with Houston and I wanted so badly for him to wallow in uncertainty and unhappiness. That's mostly because I hate his game and stupid beard, but it's also because I think some of these star players need to get their wings clipped a bit so that bad behavior isn't rewarded.

If I'm being consistent, I should probably feel the same way about this situation with Ben. Now in his case, there is definitely a bit more balance here in that he was not treated well by fans and his own coach after last year's playoffs. So I get holding out and refusing to play, but then just stick to that and don't report - take your lumps, including the lost salary. But instead, he reports to the team and acts out like a child.....yuck.

Bottom line....I kinda hope this thing drags out uncomfortably long for both player and franchise and makes all parties involved miserable as hell.

You're in Philly right? What has the local talk radio vibe been like? Insane I am sure.

Yes, I live outside of Philly in Bucks County, but I don't listen to local sport talk radio. I literally don't follow any Philly teams closely. I grew up Minnesota, lived a decade in Chicago, and then moved out here. I've tried, but I just can't be anything other than fairly ambivalent about Philly sports. So I honestly have very little insight.

[Camden [enjin:6601484]]

FNG, I've mentioned this before and I can't remember how you responded or if it got lost in the shuffle of another thread, but how can you be put off by Ben Simmons' recent behavior when in reality he's been a true professional for many months of wanting out of Philadelphia? He's been quiet, kept everything in-house for the majority of the off-season, never went to the media to voice his aversion for the Sixers organization, and most importantly he gave them every opportunity to trade him.

Meanwhile, the Sixers all but gave him the premature boot a year ago when they pursued a trade for James Harden. Simmons was quiet and carried on with his business leading the Sixers to the top seed in the Eastern Conference. They then publicly piled the blame on him for a playoff series loss that involved an entire roster, coaching staff, and front office. Simmons disappointed, absolutely, but so did the rest of the organization. Maybe the team should have rallied behind him and stood up for him a bit more. His head coach has publicly questioned if he's a championship-caliber player while also yelling at him behind the scenes during a meeting that was intended to smooth things over. I mean, this is basically over the span of an entire year and the absolute worst thing Simmons has done is fail to participate in a few preseason practices/games. The situation in Philadelphia is bad, but your criticism is misplaced, I feel. The organization has repeatedly shown him that they don't give a damn about him. Why should he feel or act any differently towards them?

[FNG]

Cam, I agree that Simmons has largely behaved quite well throughout this ordeal, and I'm certainly not a fan of 76er management. It's just that his behavior this week has disappointed me, and makes me reassess how much I would give up to bring him in. The sullen face, the cell phone in the pocket during practice, the refusing to huddle up with teammates, and finally the refusal to participate in a drill all seemed very juvenile to me. Let's just say it's not the way I would have behaved in the same situation. I have no problem with his requesting a trade. But he signed a contract, and that contract requires him to play and for Philly to pay him something like $30 million. There's nothing in the contract that says the 76ers can't hurt his feelings. And they have no obligation to trade him if they can't get value in return (and isn't that showing him the respect he craves, saying he is worth a Lilliard in return?), or to pay him if he refuses to participate.

So do I still want Ben? Sure...for the right price. I just don't respect him as much today as I did a month ago. His petulant behavior this week reminds me of why I sometimes am disenchanted with today's NBA player.

[AbeVigodaLive]

Cam, I agree that Simmons has largely behaved quite well throughout this ordeal, and I'm certainly not a fan of 76er management. It's just that his behavior this week has disappointed me, and makes me reassess how much I would give up to bring him in. The sullen face, the cell phone in the pocket during practice, the refusing to huddle up with teammates, and finally the refusal to participate in a drill all seemed very juvenile to me. Let's just say it's not the way I would have behaved in the same situation. I have no problem with his requesting a trade. But he signed a contract, and that contract requires him to play and for Philly to pay him something like $30 million. There's nothing in the contract that says the 76ers can't hurt his feelings. And they have no obligation to trade him if they can't get value in return (and isn't that showing him the respect he craves, saying he is worth a Lilliard in return?), or to pay him if he refuses to participate.

So do I still want Ben? Sure...for the right price. I just don't respect him as much today as I did a month ago. His petulant behavior this week reminds me of why I sometimes am disenchanted with today's NBA player.

You know what the most telling thing I got from all the drama this week...?

He even ignored the team security guard when greeted with a "hello" according to Shams.

It makes me think of an offhand story about Kemba Walker. Say what you want about him as a player (especially with his balky knees), but I believe it was Kevin O'Connor... and it was something like he was walking down the hallway of a hotel and Walker was in a discussion with somebody... but stopped to move his luggage and apologize to O'Connor for having it in the way.

It's such a small, silly thing. It's something that 99% of humans would do... But it's kinda telling that it's all it takes for me to like a modern NBA player slightly more than somebody else.

[BloopOracle]

His behavior doesn't bother me at all, I've seen it with too many stars now. He will get traded eventually like they did and suddenly turn into a model citizen. He's definitely doing childish things but I think that's just his only leverage he can really use under the CBA. I would still be elated to see him on the wolves!

[Camden [enjin:6601484]]

If you can create a foursome of Karl-Anthony Towns, D'Angelo Russell, Anthony Edwards, and Ben Simmons, I think you have to go for that. That's what I keep coming back to. Simmons has his flaws, but he truly is an impactful player on both ends of the court. And even better than that, he fits what the Wolves' current roster has in place. Once you start breaking up that nucleus, trading for Simmons doesn't appeal as much, in my opinion.

[D-Mac [enjin:19736340]]

His behavior doesn't bother me at all, I've seen it with too many stars now. He will get traded eventually like they did and suddenly turn into a model citizen. He's definitely doing childish things but I think that's just his only leverage he can really use under the CBA. I would still be elated to see him on the wolves!

Agree, it doesn't bother me at all either. Phili threw him under the bus last year. I'm usually not a fan of guys doing this, but phili has it coming. Morey, rivers and Embiid deserve to deal with this now. He'll get traded somewhere, and when he does, I hope phili sucks