Ben Simmons: 76ers didn’t give me the help I needed
The Brooklyn Nets point guard has shared that he didn’t feel that the Philadelphia 76ers supported him when he was going through mental health struggles.
Ben Simmons was part of a mega-trade last NBA season when the Philadelphia 76ers sent him, along with Seth Curry and Andre Drummond to the Brooklyn Nets in exchange for James Harden.
Now, the Nets point guard has declared that the Sixers didn’t help him when he needed it most- a period when he was dealing with mental health issues. He spoke on the matter In the latest episode of Old Man and the Three, a podcast by ex-NBA player J.J. Redick.
“I was in such a bad place where I was like, f***, I’m trying to get here and you guys are, like, throwing all these other things at me to where you’re not helping. And that’s all I wanted, was help,” said Simmons to his former Sixers teammate.
“I didn’t feel like I got it from coaches, teammates- I won’t say all teammates, because there’s great guys on that team that did reach out and are still my friends- but I didn’t feel like I got that, and it was just a tough place for me.” he added.
Prior to the trade, Simmons distanced himself from the Philadelphia organization and was fined more than $19 million for missing more than 50 regular-season games. Because of this, the Australian sued the Sixers and with the help of the NBA players union he was able to recover a portion of his salary.
READ ALSO:
Boston Celtics’ coach Ime Udoka faces suspension for an affair with a staff member
Sarver to Sell: The Suns owner is set to let go of his stake in the franchise
Managing Expectations: Celtics owner doesn’t see repeat of last season
Simmons did not leave Nets chat group
In early August, NBA analyst Ric Bucher reported that Simmons had left the Nets players’ chat group after they lost Game 3 of the first round of the playoffs against the Boston Celtics. Having just arrived in Brooklyn, the Australian was ruled out due to a back injury he suffered from falling down the stairs of his home.
However, the 25-year-old denied the report as he spoke with Redick and said that he asked teammate Patty Mills if he could have removed himself from the group by mistake. Simmons also said he hates how people can invent anything on the internet and blow issues up.
“I didn’t leave the chat group. I wrote to Patty (Mills) ‘Did I leave the group?’ and he told me that no one had written there in over a month.”