The future of Ben Simmons is in doubt again after he had a season-ending injury with the Sacramento Kings. However, the documentary from Simmons was still released to highlight his NBA comeback journey. Simmons discussed his negative ending to the Philadelphia 76ers tenure and how bad he felt letting down the Brooklyn Nets. A blockbuster trade saw the Nets hoping Simmons would help them contend with Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving.
Simmons revealed his health got worse and he felt terrible about letting everyone down:
“So I’ve been dealing with that through my career, but I think it eventually gave out right before I got to Brooklyn. I think it was the day I got traded. I remember going to run upstairs, and my whole back just dropping out. And I went up and was laying in my bed, but I couldn’t move
I just couldn’t believe it. Just, you know, you get traded, and then you’re with Kev, Kai, those guys of a high caliber. Yeah, and then they’re looking like, ‘We just made the trade.’
They’re like, ‘Damn, what’s wrong with him?’ You know, it’s supposed to be moving, supposed to be a good time, and you’re laying in bed like, ‘I might, I might need something, you know, surgery or whatever it is to fix this,’ because it was on another level.”
Simmons claimed that he suffered another injury on the day that he was traded to Brooklyn and couldn’t suit up like he hoped to. The first half season for the Nets saw Simmons sitting on the bench as they got swept in the first round by the Boston Celtics.
Ben Simmons Trade Destroyed The Nets
Brooklyn was the dominant favorite to win the 2022 NBA Championship just one season after their legendary series against the Milwaukee Bucks. Durant came inches away from eliminating Milwaukee, despite both James Harden and Irving dealing with injuries.
Irving refusing to get vaccinated the following season led to Harden demanding a trade as things fell apart. Simmons entered a decent situation since Kyrie was cleared to play later in the season, but he couldn’t get on the court.
The next year saw Simmons playing and looking terrible the entire season. Irving demanded a trade that sent him to the Dallas Mavericks to ruin any chance of contention. Durant was out next with a huge trade to the Phoenix Suns, and Brooklyn has not been relevant since.
Ben Simmons Wanted To Help Durant
The documentary also showed that Simmons was excited about getting a fresh start in New York City. An ugly ending in Philadelphia saw Simmons wanting to leave after Joel Embiid and Doc Rivers blamed him for the team’s failure.
Simmons regrets not having a realistic chance to play his best basketball with Durant and Irving. The defense and passing skills of Simmons could have made him perfect for that Nets team after they lost Harden. Unfortunately, it ended poorly and saw Simmons getting bought out by Brooklyn to move to the Los Angeles Clippers.
This article was originally published on HEAVY
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