Sixers Suspend Ben Simmons For One Game

[eyeatoma]

Love it. Morey in the mud, don't give a f***

We ain't trading an all-star, all-defensive player with 4 years of team control for someone else's bench crumbs and a 2nd rounder.

The owner is a billionaire; looks like they're ready to eat his whole contract and let Simmons wither in Philly, and I'm here for it. What a *** snake this guy turned out to be. Good luck to any team that gets him (eventually).

As far as people saying "wasted a year of Embiid" - bet you Sixers will be even better this year than last year. Addition by subtraction of Ben.

I am SO here for it.

Love that Daryl Morey has it in his head that you need two superstars to win the NBA title. He's so wise, the guy that won rings with James Harden and Dwight Howard, er, Chris Paul, er...

A couple good role players in that salary slot would 100% make the Sixers more dangerous.

Not every team can be so lucky to have Kevin Durant's giant ass shoe literally save them from an ECF exit.

[eyeatoma]

Morey is playing with a big fire. Simmons is represented by Rich Paul. The most powerful agent in the league now. Not a guy you wanna get on the bad side with

Why, because Paul will advise his clients to sit out, whilst not knowing the basic tenants of the CBA? How's that working for Ben right now?

[SpreeChokeJob]

So theyre gonna end up sending him home, getting paid while getting off with a bullchit injury? lol

Doubt it they are going to fine him again and again until the league steps in and going by Silvers comments it appears the league is backing Morey.

i wouldnt wanna be the team that fines a player claiming mental health issues. Even if that player is Ben Simmons

It’s called fraud. Same as people who fake injury for disability checks. I’m not sure being fraudulent in a highly visible case is the right way to go about things, but Simmons is special.

[G R E Y]

Read on Twitter

Yikes.

Read on Twitter

Yikes is right. This is the absolute worst thing Morey can do and I'm shocked he's actually going this route. He's essentially saying we'd rather hold onto you and not get anything for the next four years -- basically a layer of vengeance slipping through -- than get role players from other teams -- basically not negotiating in good faith as I think, for example, CJ and three picks is hardly a paltry offer, and it would certainly help 76ers right now -- which shows he's not that much different than Ben; he wants what he wants and that's it.

Even if he feels it to his marrow, it's an absolute professional misstep to voice this publicly as he's now creating a viable option to point to as adversarial -- 'See? They don't want to trade me in good faith.'

Morey can't expect to get #1 franchise guy offers when by all actions Embiid is established as that on the 76ers. And Dame is that on the Blazers. And Beal is that on the Wizards. So why would teams trade their franchise guys for Simmons who is not even that on the 76ers?

So not only is Morey now coming across as trying to screw it to Ben, but also to the teams he's apparently negotiating with while insulting their offers. He's in dick waving mode trying to 'win' everything with everybody.

And it'll only last so long as Embiid isn't tired of it. So who is Morey kidding with the 'lasting four years' malarkey? Hard to see how this is in the best interests of the franchise.

[levon]

Doubt it they are going to fine him again and again until the league steps in and going by Silvers comments it appears the league is backing Morey.

i wouldnt wanna be the team that fines a player claiming mental health issues. Even if that player is Ben Simmons

It’s called fraud. Same as people who fake injury for disability checks. I’m not sure being fraudulent in a highly visible case is the right way to go about things, but Simmons is special.

a) How would you claim fraud?
b) The biggest criticism of Ben is his mental issues on the court, and he's recently had traumatizing stuff happen.

I'm not saying this isn't a cheap and manipulative move on his part. Just saying it's not exactly baseless. I don't know if there's a precedent for this before in league history.

[Pelon chingon]

Morey is playing with a big fire. Simmons is represented by Rich Paul. The most powerful agent in the league now. Not a guy you wanna get on the bad side with

Why, because Paul will advise his clients to sit out, whilst not knowing the basic tenants of the CBA? How's that working for Ben right now?

The very fact that Simmons showed up in the first place told you everything you need to know about who has the leverage.

[ReasonablySober]

I am SO here for it.

Love that Daryl Morey has it in his head that you need two superstars to win the NBA title. He's so wise, the guy that won rings with James Harden and Dwight Howard, er, Chris Paul, er...

A couple good role players in that salary slot would 100% make the Sixers more dangerous.

Not every team can be so lucky to have Kevin Durant's giant ass shoe literally save them from an ECF exit.

Yea man, it was luck, not the thousands of other plays that went one way or another that lead to the title.

[bisme37]

And it'll only last so long as Embiid isn't tired of it. So who is Morey kidding with the 'lasting four years' malarkey? Hard to see how this is in the best interests of the franchise.

I stumbled upon an article yesterday that said the fastest way to get this drama over with would be if Joel just comes out and says he wants the team to make a trade so they can focus on winning games. If Joel becomes impatient about it that would likely speed this whole trade "process" up considerably.

[eyeatoma]

Read on Twitter

Yikes.

Read on Twitter

Yikes is right. This is the absolute worst thing Morey can do and I'm shocked he's actually going this route. Even if he feels it to his marrow, essentially saying we'd rather hold onto you and not get anything for the next four years -- basically a layer of vengeance slipping through -- than get role players from other teams -- basically not negotiating in good faith as I think, for example, CJ and three picks is hardly a paltry offer, and it would certainly help 76ers right now -- he's not that much different than Ben -- he wants what he wants and that's it.

It's an absolute professional misstep to voice this publicly as he's now creating a viable option to point to as adversarial -- 'See? They don't want to trade me in good faith.'

Morey can't expect to get #1 franchise guy offers when by all actions Embiid is established as that on the 76ers. And Dame is that on the Blazers. And Beal is that on the Wizards. So why would teams trade their franchise guys for Simmons who is not even that on the 76ers?

So not only is Morey now coming across as trying to screw it to Ben, but also to the teams he's apparently negotiating with while insulting their offers. He's in dick waving mode trying to 'win' everything with everybody.

And it'll only last so long as Embiid isn't tired of it. So who is Morey kidding with the 'lasting four years' malarkey? Hard to see how this is in the best interests of the franchise.

This probably ends by the trade deadline. Morey is using this as a tactic to get Ben back into the gym and playing. He is trying to show Rich Paul and Ben that this will go long forever, if Ben does not cooperate. Ben just went down a road everyone knew he could, but didn't believe he would. Faking injury, and worse mental illness. Ben is knowingly tanking his value, yet it's Morey's job to just be like, yeah it's okay, you can make this all about you, and we'll trade you for pennies? Like you said as long as Jo is fine with this pass they'll stick to it. I don't see it going past the deadline.

[mademan]

Doubt it they are going to fine him again and again until the league steps in and going by Silvers comments it appears the league is backing Morey.

i wouldnt wanna be the team that fines a player claiming mental health issues. Even if that player is Ben Simmons

It’s called fraud. Same as people who fake injury for disability checks. I’m not sure being fraudulent in a highly visible case is the right way to go about things, but Simmons is special.

The entire criticism against Ben has been mental. He cant even shoot in games cause he's afraid of how stupid he'd look. Not that he's a bad shooter, he literally cannot even put up a shot. And now he's going to play on a team where there is an adversarial relationship (his fault, ofc) in front of a crowd that he thinks will be merciless.

like i said, it's ben simmons, but i still wouldnt wanna be the squad that fines a player that claims mental health issues.

[jbk1234]

Morey has the support of the Owners/City/players. Hes willing to win a war of attrition.

That's a poor analogy because the Sixers aren't competing against Simmons, they're competing against 29 other teams.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-J327A using RealGM mobile app

Eh, it's not just about winning right. Owners are doing this for the money (certainly some owners might prioritize winning more than others, but at the end of the day money matters to everyone). I don't think it is absurd for one team to sacrifice a bit for the sake of empowering the ownership and management over labor. So in that sense, the owners aren't always competing and are aligned on doing things that will give them the most leverage and make them the most money. Not allowing players to do what they want, when they want, plays into that.

What's the end goal here though? Forcing guys to play in situations in which they're clearly unhappy? Maybe pushing a young player to a point where his mental well being is negatively impacted? That's the win?

I thought the goal was to get the best return for Simmons that the market would bear. Or, maybe put the best roster around Embiid they could while he's still in his prime. None of what's going on now gets them closer to that.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-J327A using RealGM mobile app

[azcatz11]

Morey is playing with a big fire. Simmons is represented by Rich Paul. The most powerful agent in the league now. Not a guy you wanna get on the bad side with

This is good for the league, long term though. Hopefully this drags out the entire year. And BS doesn't get a dime in pay.

[AussieCeltic]

Simmons is a real piece of **** using mental health to try and collect his checks, it's a slap in the face to everyone that actually has to deal with issues.

I actually believe he has mental health issues and said it over a year ago. Forget the on court stuff, the off court family issues about his sister is no joke and all off it coincided with his play going down hill last season. Throw in that they told him he was traded for Harden and you can see the mental toll it’s taking on him.

[SwatLakeCity527]

Question of the day: Would you fake physical/mental illness for millions of dollars?

....I probably would, so can't blame the guy

It's right that we shouldn't assume, but don't pretend the timing and situation aren't EXTREMELY suspect.

[Nate505]

Read on Twitter

Back tightness gave him PTSD?

What's annoying is that this cheapens real claims of mental illness. We all know he is mentally fine and physically fine. He is just like a spoiled child being told no for the first time.

His family has a history of mental illness. I've said on this forum multiple times that he seemed somewhere on the spectrum. I wouldn't be surprised if all of this triggered a bout of mental illness. We have people trashing this guy all over the country and he prob can't even leave his home without hearing it.

Then professional sports is probably not the right career path for him.

The fact he doesn't act like a professional is a pretty good sign it isn't.

[Nate505]

Ben wasn't joking. He really doesn't want to be on that team.

Then he should probably leave and not collect his money.

Or he could just be an ass and nuisance so he can keep his money and still get out of Philly.

Hopefully the team and league fines him to oblivion.

[Mos_Heat]

Philly fans think that this guy is a mental midget, but at the same time hope he would play his ass off under this kind of pressure. Hilarious

[Flash4thewin]

So theyre gonna end up sending him home, getting paid while getting off with a bullchit injury? lol

Doubt it they are going to fine him again and again until the league steps in and going by Silvers comments it appears the league is backing Morey.

i wouldnt wanna be the team that fines a player claiming mental health issues. Even if that player is Ben Simmons

I see the 76er fining him. If this goes to arbitration Simmons still will lose because his action and intent will sink him. I have never seen such a combination of stupidity and incompetence in the NBA and that’s saying a lot.

[The High Cyde]

Imagine taking criticism this bad, how would you ever advance in life. For example whenever my boss chews me out I take that as constructive criticism and work to be better, but to just withdraw into your comfort zone and become a recluse is not the way to progress, in other words, he’s being childish. Can’t blame the ball club and league fining him, have at it.

[G R E Y]

Read on Twitter

Yikes.

Read on Twitter

Yikes is right. This is the absolute worst thing Morey can do and I'm shocked he's actually going this route. Even if he feels it to his marrow, essentially saying we'd rather hold onto you and not get anything for the next four years -- basically a layer of vengeance slipping through -- than get role players from other teams -- basically not negotiating in good faith as I think, for example, CJ and three picks is hardly a paltry offer, and it would certainly help 76ers right now -- he's not that much different than Ben -- he wants what he wants and that's it.

It's an absolute professional misstep to voice this publicly as he's now creating a viable option to point to as adversarial -- 'See? They don't want to trade me in good faith.'

Morey can't expect to get #1 franchise guy offers when by all actions Embiid is established as that on the 76ers. And Dame is that on the Blazers. And Beal is that on the Wizards. So why would teams trade their franchise guys for Simmons who is not even that on the 76ers?

So not only is Morey now coming across as trying to screw it to Ben, but also to the teams he's apparently negotiating with while insulting their offers. He's in dick waving mode trying to 'win' everything with everybody.

And it'll only last so long as Embiid isn't tired of it. So who is Morey kidding with the 'lasting four years' malarkey? Hard to see how this is in the best interests of the franchise.

This probably ends by the trade deadline. Morey is using this as a tactic to get Ben back into the gym and playing. He is trying to show Rich Paul and Ben that this will go long forever, if Ben does not cooperate. Ben just went down a road everyone knew he could, but didn't believe he would. Faking injury, and worse mental illness. Ben is knowingly tanking his value, yet it's Morey's job to just be like, yeah it's okay, you can make this all about you, and we'll trade you for pennies? Like you said as long as Jo is fine with this pass they'll stick to it. I don't see it going past the deadline.

I get it. I just disagree that this tactic is in any way constructive. It's coming across as Morey taking it personally and like it's getting to him, as in he feels the need to engage in the back and forth in the media.

If this is to last until the trade deadline, then Morey ought to have just been a pro publicly and worked behind the scenes. Either way, Ben is not returning to play for the 76ers. But the words from other FOs is that it's Morey who's not negotiating in good faith. As I explained, if Ben isn't the franchise player, how can he reasonably expect a franchise player back? There have been ten or so teams in play for Ben up until recently. That's a third of the league! Even if more players become available by December, is there any indication that a franchise player will be available? It won't be Dame or Beal this season. It's just waiting for a hypothetical. And in that it still circles back to sticking it to anyone and everyone who isn't acquiescing to his demands. It's that two guys, Ben and Morey, dressed as Spiderman pointing at each other meme. Morey's stooping rather than rising above it and it shows.