The Philadelphia 76ers have maintained publicly that they are committed to working with Ben Simmons this offseason, but it does not sound like that commitment is being reciprocated.
The Sixers denied a recent report that Simmons has ignored them all offseason, but Bleacher Report’s Jason Dumas says that is exactly what has happened. A source told Dumars on Thursday that Simmons has “cut off communication with basically everyone in the Sixers organization.” All dealings with the franchise are going through Simmons’ agent, Rich Paul.
Dumas also reported that Simmons would be open to a trade to the Golden State Warriors, though he really has no say over where he ends up.
The relationship between Simmons and the 76ers is said to be tarnished beyond repair. All of the reports create a major problem for them, as they lower Simmons’ trade value. If teams know Simmons wants out of Philly, they can simply bide their time until the situation reaches a boiling point. That is exactly what happened with Anthony Davis before the New Orleans Pelicans traded him to the Los Angeles Lakers.
Simmons was an offensive liability for the Sixers during the postseason. While the former No. 1 overall pick is a great defender and still just 25, it’s going to be tough for Philadelphia to justify its reported asking price given the situation.
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