The point guard sat out the entirety of last season while dealing with mental health issues and his time with the Sixers, who selected him with the first overall pick in 2016, came to an end in February.
A trade with the Brooklyn Nets was completed at the February trade deadline, with James Harden moving in the opposite direction.
Simmons has now claimed that he didn’t get the support he needed from his former team when he spoke on JJ Redick’s ‘Old Man and the Three’ podcast.
“I was in such a bad place where I was like, shit, I’m trying to get here and you guys are, like, throwing all this other stuff at me where they’re not helping. And that’s all I wanted, it was help,” he said.
“I didn’t feel like I got (help) from coaches, teammates, I won’t say all teammates, because there are great guys on that team who reached out and are still my friends. But I didn’t. I don’t feel like I got it, And it was a difficult place for me.”
Simmons also believes the team didn’t handle things properly, although he admits he has to take some responsibility and cited Doc Rivers’ approach that ultimately led to Simmons’ suspension.
“I actually talked to Doc before practice. I said, ‘Doc, I’m not ready. Mentally, I’m not ready. Please understand that,'” he added.
“I tried to let him know earlier, and he was like, ‘Well, I’m going to put you on anyway.’ I’m like, ‘Okay.’ He told me to come in. I looked at it. It was like a minute of practice, like, ‘Ben, come on in.’
“I’m like, first of all, no one is doing that. You’re doing this on purpose. And that’s how I felt too. It seems like everyone is trying to screw me over now. They’re fining me.” for not lifting weights, but physically I’m one of the strongest guys on the team.
“So now they’re fining me for little things. It was just a buildup. Obviously I didn’t handle things the right way, but neither did the team and the people who had that power. .”
Simmons, currently nursing an injury, is expected to be ready for the start of training camp and is excited to join his new teammates, sharing his belief that they can go the distance.
“He’s going to be sick. I can’t wait. I’m very excited. I have a new number, a new shirt. I’m looking forward to it,” he declared.
“I think we have a special team. I think if we all do it together, we will be the champions. That is the ultimate goal.”
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