Former Sixer blasts Ben Simmons

It's safe to say that former 76ers teammates Georges Niang and Ben Simmons won't be exchanging Christmas presents this year.

On Tuesday, Niang went on the "Road Trippin'" podcast and put Simmons on blast, questioning the point guard's mental makeup, commitment to basketball and professionalism. The crux of his issues with Simmons stems from the 2021-22 season when the latter sat out the entire season due to a falling out with the Sixers front office. During that timeframe, Niang joined the franchise on a minimum-level contract. 

Niang was admittedly "excited" to play with Simmons due to his ability to drive and kick the ball to shooters like himself. However, that stance changed when he first interacted with the Aussie in practice.

"The Ben Simmons thing pissed me off," Niang said. "Because guys are trying to make a living. I signed just a little over the minimum. This [pairing with Simmons] is going to be great for my career. And then he was like, 'I'm not playing' and I'm like, what the [expletive]. I'm like, 'How the [expletive] am I going to make something happen?' And then he was walking around the facility, and they'd be like, 'What's up, man?' trying to welcome him back, and he'd be like, [nods], and that's when I was like, [expletive] this dude."

Niang also blamed Simmons for failing to understand that the NBA is a "fraternity" where players respect each other and want their fellow hoopers to get paid. The 3-and-D specialist acknowledged the NBA "is a business" but felt Simmons lacked "the etiquette" to respect the brotherhood of the league.

The 31-year-old's latest remarks are a follow-up to his previous comments on "The John Kincade Show" where he blamed Simmons for ruining the Sixers' 2021-22 season. Niang said that Simmons' holdout ensured the Sixers couldn't capitalize on Joel Embiid's then-career-best season that saw him average 30.6 points and 11.7 rebounds from a career-high 68 games. 

Despite playing without Simmons, Niang had two productive seasons in a Sixers uniform, averaging 8.7 points and 2.5 rebounds on 40 percent shooting from deep. The impressive campaigns landed him a $26 million contract with the Cavaliers last summer. 

In his first season in Cleveland,  Niang posted career-high numbers of 9.4 points and 3.4 rebounds while appearing in all 82 games.