Myth wrote:DroseReturnChi wrote:DTP wrote:I'm going to say this as respectfully as I can- that's not the 76ers' problem. Once again, they aren't forcing him to work....they are just not paying him to not work. Ben is a multi-millionaire...if the mental struggles are so bad right now that he can't perform his job, take the year off and get better. A company shouldn't have to pay him millions of dollars for it though.
your twisting words. his mental health is related to sixers. if the sixers trade him he can perform his job thats why he said any team than the sixers. this isnt rocket science. ben isnt as rich as you say he needs money until end of extension for generational wealth he is in the process of getting rich. sixers need to pay him once they signed him retiring him bc of mental health is another matter.
If they are so toxic that they are causing mental health issues, then he should sue and see if he wins. But outside of such lawsuits, I have never heard of a US company that pays somebody millions to be at home and is blamed for mental health issues. If he can’t handle NBA life, that is on him, or if 76ers are egregious to the point of it being their fault then a lawsuit should be had, but outside of mistreatment, you don’t get to force a company to pay you if you won’t do your job, even when mental health is the issue.
I don't think the problem is as much the Sixers players and organization as it is the Sixers fan base and media. I don't think that Simmons can handle the pressure to perform that Philadelphia fans and media put on athletes that play for their teams. Now, what is truly ridiculous about this is that Ben SImmons has been LOVED by Sixers fans for virtually his entire Sixers career. They literally CHEER every time he takes a 3, and go CRAZY when he hits one.
Not to say that fans in other cities are not knowledgable and demanding, but Philly fans demand that players on their teams work hard, give it their all, and simply do their best. Guys like Brian Dawkins - who would occasionally get IV's after games because of how much he would empty his tank - were WORSHIPPED in Philly...and the feeling was mutual. Same with Allen Iverson. That is why Embiid is loved - he feeds off of the passion of Philly fans. He also took it to heart when Sixers fans said he wasn't in the shape he needed to be in...he accepted the challenge, and became an MVP-caliber player.
Not every player loved playing in Philly. Mike Schmidt - arguably the greatest 3rd baseman of all time - was too cool and detached for Philly fans, and Schmidt had a difficult time with the media. Philly fans will not let you slide or go through the motions - they demand their pound of flesh ("Are you not ENTERTAINED?"), but if you "play every game like it is your last" (AI), you will be universally loved.
Ben SImmons simply cannot hold up to the demands of Philadelphia sports fans. He has had his share of snarky social media posts over the past year or so - believing that some fans (and the sports radio ecosystem) focused more on what he COULDN'T do than what he did well. There certainly was a portion of the fanbase that felt that way - that Simmons had not improved at all on the holes in his offensive game, which was the team Achilles' Heel in the playoffs (did I mention that the fan base is passionate and knowledgable?), It came home to roost in the Atlanta series, with Ben melting down on the court for the entire world to see.
Now, if 1) Sixers fans KNEW that he took these holes in his game seriously and was working RELENTLESSLY to fix these holes in his game (including taking outside shots during the season and going to the line even though he wasn't great at it - like a true MVP like GIannis did), or 2) if, instead of saying after Game 7, "I am what I am ...it is what it is", saying, "I know that I have let my teammates and the fans down due to the issues with my offensive game, and I promise you that I will work ALL SUMMER long to fix these issues once and for all". the city would have supported him and embraced him. However, the path he chose instead was to find others to scapegoat (see: Rivers, Glenn aka "Doc").
Sixers fans aren't buying that weak sauce ish...and Ben knows it.
So the solution?
"Send me to Minnesota...or Sacramento...or somewhere where I can have the team built around me" - with, I guess, the fan adulation and low EXPECTATIONS FOR GREATNESS that he thinks may come with that. Although I think that if Ben Simmons thinks that by getting traded to the Wolves or Spurs or Kings will eliminate the expectations that fans will have for "Simmo the Savage", I think he is in for a rude awakening. Fans in those cities won't put up with this jabroni crap, either (and neither will the players).
Jason Kelce had it right a few weeks ago:
"Just play better, man. The city will love you."
