"You say everything you want to get rid of him, but then you wonder why the next team want him" - Gilbert Arenas on how Philadelphia 76ers messed up the Ben Simmons saga
Ben Simmons is undergoing a lot of media scrutiny because of his situation with the Philadelphia 76ers. The Australian has made his intentions clear of not returning to the team for next season. Simmons will also not be coming for the training camp that starts next week, which in turn will bring upon him fines and suspensions.
However, the two-time All-Star is ready to face all the repercussions to find his way out of the Sixers. Many NBA experts and panelists have slammed Ben Simmons for this decision. This time it was former NBA star Gilbert Arenas who shared his views on the situation. The four-time All-Star somewhere pointed out the mistake Philly made in handling the situation. Speaking about the whole-saga on the 'No Chill With Gill Show', he said:
"This is a sad thing that the owners and the management does. They don't understand how the world actually works. So you have a product and you don't want the product anymore, right? So what you try to do is, you try to damage the products to the world. Ben Simmons can't shoot, he can't work out, you say everything that you need to get rid of him, but then you wonder why the next team don't want him."
Gilbert Arenas opens up on what messed up the Ben Simmons trade for the Philadelphia 76ers
Ben Simmons has been in the headlines ever since his poor performance for Philly in the series against Atlanta. However, to add fuel to the fire, Doc Rivers and Joel Embiid indirectly called out the Australian, which eventually led down to the turmoil there.
ESPN Sources: Philadelphia 76ers All-Star Ben Simmons will not report for opening of training camp next week and intends to never play another game for the franchise. Simmons hasn’t spoken to team since a late August meeting when he communicated this message to Sixers officials.
Arenas, who himself played in the league for over 10 years, had his say on the whole situation, where he explained what the Sixers could have done differently to get the perfect trade deal for Simmons. Speaking about the situation, Arenas said:
"If you really wanted to get rid of him, you would have done the opposite. You would have said,"O man, he has a great work ethic, he's this that, but you know we are looking for a conventional guard, so we got to let him go, even though we don't want to let him go", that right there sells him. But the fact that you told everyone, he don't want to do this... Now nobody wants to give you full ticket for him, they going to give you pennies on a dollar and you don't want a penny because you know what he is, he is a superstar."
Simmons certainly wants out of Philly, but the leverage here looks to be on the side of the Sixers, as he still has four years left on the contract. Doc Rivers came out and also cleared that he believed in Simmons and his abilities. With the Australian already making it clear that he won't appear for camp, it will be very interesting to see where this saga heads..
Also Read: How much is Gilbert Arenas Net Worth in 2021?