Ben Simmons and the Philadelphia 76ers continue to be involved in a vicious war that started at the end of last year.
After Philly’s discouraging exit from the second round of the Eastern Conference playoffs, Simmons got tossed under the bus by teammate Joel Embiid and head coach Doc Rivers over his unimpressive offensive showing.
Simmons did not respond well to this. He demanded a trade right away and promised to not play another game for the 76ers. Due to his refusal to play, the Sixers stopped paying him. This has led to him reportedly starting to run out of money. In the meantime, the Sixers have rejected all trade offers for Simmons for not being good enough.
Fortunately, the Dallas Mavericks may have the solution to everyone’s problems.
According to NBA insider Austin Krell, team star Luka Doncic is a fan of Simmons’ work.
“Doncic is among the players to have expressed interest in playing with Ben Simmons,” he wrote. “That interest extends all the way back to the summer.”
While a Simmons-Doncic pairing doesn’t sound a particularly great fit on paper, it’s also one that could work under certain circumstances. Jason Kidd, the Mavericks’ new head coach, was also a scoring-challenged point guard in his heyday – but that didn’t preclude him from becoming an all-time great. That experience could serve Simmons well.
Any trade for Simmons would start with Kristaps Porzingis, whose relationship with Doncic isn’t great, plus spare parts. Whether that would ultimately be enough to sway Philly remains to be seen.
Actions have consequences. https://t.co/TPnBzy8ncP
— Game 7 (@game7__) December 9, 2021
Simmons has also recently linked to a three-team trade involving the Los Angeles Lakers and Sacramento Kings.
One way or another, Simmons is getting dealt sooner rather than later. Will it ultimately be to Dallas? Time will tell.
Related: 3 NFL Teams Russell Wilson Will Waive No-Trade Clause For
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
