Ben Simmons tried to connect with teammate Joel Embiid this summer, after years of rifts between the two.
It doesn’t mean there will be a reunion in Philly, but insider Ramona Shelburne isn’t completely ruling out the possibility.
“He even reached out to Embiid and others last summer, league sources said, hoping to mend fences,” Shelburne said. “Simmons, who is in the final year of his contract in Brooklyn, has shown how he can still impact the game with his passing, length and defense. But in the second quarter of Friday’s game, he missed the rim again in a clip that quickly went viral — reminding everyone how bad his time in Philadelphia went. Can they try to find you again together? Another source called it impossible, but things have happened that you don’t know. Especially with the Sixers.”
Embiid and Simmons played four seasons together for the 76ers and it wasn’t without its fair share of drama.
When Simmons was traded to the Nets, Embiid told reporters that he didn’t think winning was Ben’s priority.
“It’s unfortunate the win wasn’t a big deal,” Embiid said of Simmons. “It’s unfortunate for him to have his team and, I think, being a player was very important to him.”
There was also drama in the Game 7 playoff loss when Simmons blew it in the clutch and Embiid said to Simmons, “I’ll be honest: I thought the turning point was when we got an open shot, and we let it go. throw and we missed one, then they went down and scored a goal.”
Then, before the start of the 2022-23 season, Simmons told ESPN that he and Embiid “never really talked” when they played together.
“I don’t think there was really a relationship there. Like about friendship? You can try as hard as you want to try to be close to someone, be their friend, whatever, but everyone is different as people, so for me, it’s never personal. I have no anger or hatred towards him. He is what he is and I am what he is. And we have our personal lives. And the job is basketball, so at that point, my goal is to win and I have to win with Jo. He’s a great player, we didn’t do that.”
READ MORE: Rajon Rondo Reveals What Makes Him Most Excited About LeBron
Source link
