Philadelphia 76ers’ president of basketball operations Daryl Morey finally got his wish. The 76ers managed to swap disgruntled All-Star guard Ben Simmons for the Brooklyn Nets’ superstar and 2018’s NBA MVP James Harden.

The deal was finalized just before the NBA’s trade deadline on Thursday. Besides Simmons, the 76ers are sending marksman Seth Curry, center Andre Drummond, and two first-round picks to Brooklyn as well. On the other hand, veteran guard Paul Millsap will arrive in Philly alongside Harden. 

The 76ers and the Nets are content with the deal. Philadelphia managed to get Simmons, who asked to be traded in the summer, out of town while receiving a superstar in return. For Brooklyn, the deal was about moving an unhappy player in Harden and getting young and better defensively while also acquiring valuable picks.

Ben Simmons didn’t play at all in 2021-22, first refusing to join the team and then citing mental health as the roadblock on his return to court. The 25-year-old, who has three All-Star appearances on his resume, averaged 14.3 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 6.9 assists last season.

James Harden arrived in Brooklyn from the Houston Rockets in early 2021 and was supposed to be a part of the Nets’ three-headed monster alongside Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving. But injuries and other issues prevented the trio from showing what they were capable of. In the meantime, Harden became unhappy with his role on the team and reportedly welcomed the opportunity to go to Philly with great enthusiasm.

In Philadelphia, Harden will reunite with Morey, who also traded for him in 2012 while he was general manager of the Rockets. While the two were together in Houston, the Rockets never missed out on the playoffs while reaching two Western Conference Finals.

Harden is averaging 22.5 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 10.2 assists in 2021-22. He is set to become a free agent in the summer if he declines his player option and would be eligible to sign a five-year contract worth $275 million.

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It appears that the Philadelphia 76ers lowered their demands in Ben Simmons trade talks. Despite previously insisting on an All-Star caliber player, the 76ers are now willing to accept a package that includes a reliable starter, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer‘s Keith Pompey.

Pompey reports that one of the discussions the 76ers had in recent days centered on a deal that would see Simmons go to the Detroit Pistons and forward Jerami Grant returning back to Philly. Grant, who emerged as the Pistons’ best player in the last couple of seasons, was drafted by the 76ers in 2014 and spent his first two years in NBA with the franchise.

The trade would also include Detroit sending other assets to Philadelphia. This would notably include a draft pick, a young player, and a forward. The 76ers reportedly identified Kelly Olynyk and Saddiq Bey as possible additions to the deal, but the Pistons are unwilling to part with either of them at the moment.

Ben Simmons asked the 76ers for a trade in the offseason and opted not to report to the team for the start of training camp. He ended his holdout in early October after the 76ers started fining him, but is yet to play a game in the 2021-22 season. The 25-year-old is currently out due to a lower back injury and mental health issues.

The 76ers are working the phones in the meantime and have a list of 30 players that they would accept for Simmons, according to The Athletic. Despite this, there is no indication that a potential deal will materialize anytime soon.

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It turns out that All-Star Ben Simmons might continue losing money despite rejoining the Philadelphia 76ers ahead of the start of the season. According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the 76ers intend to resume fining Simmons, this time for lack of cooperation with the team.

Simmons still hasn’t played a game with the 76ers in 2021-22 and has been a limited participant in the team’s activities so far. The 25-year-old reportedly told the team that he “wasn’t mentally prepared to play” and sought professional help. However, he refused any assistance from Philly and has been unwilling to share details about the process with the organization.

The player’s unwillingness to cooperate with the franchise has now prompted the 76ers to place his future salary into escrow with the intention to deduct fines from it. The first one will be for missing the game against the Detroit Pistons on Thursday.

Wojnarowski reports that Philadelphia plans to continue fining Simmons for every game he misses until he becomes more open to working with the team’s medical staff.

Being fined isn’t new for Ben Simmons, considering this was the tactic the 76ers used when he decided not to report for training camp in an effort to force a trade. Simmons reportedly lost $2 million before returning to the team, at which point the fines stopped coming in.

While the 76ers would like to get Simmons back on the floor at some point, he doesn’t seem open to the idea and is still only focused on getting out of Philadelphia. But it may be a while before this happens, considering that Philly continues to ask significant return for him in trade talks with other teams.   

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The most intriguing storyline of this year’s NBA offseason is receiving a new chapter. According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the Philadelphia 76ers’ disgruntled All-Star Ben Simmons has changed his stance and became more open to rejoining the team.

Simmons asked the 76ers to trade him in the summer and has remained away from the franchise through training camp and so far in the preseason. Previous reports indicated that the 25-year-old guard is determined not to play for the franchise anymore, but it appears that isn’t the case anymore.

Wojnarowski reports that Simmons’ representatives and the 76ers had positive talks over the weekend and that the player is willing to have a sit-down with Philly’s brass. If everything goes well, he could rejoin the team “as soon as this week.”

The 76ers were ready to respect Simmons’ request but were unable to find an acceptable trade offer. Most teams were willing to offer a picks-heavy package, while Philadelphia is interested in a deal that would include a star player and help them remain championship contenders.

When Simmons didn’t report to the team, the 76ers decided to withhold part of his salary and put the money in escrow. They proceeded to fine him for every preseason game he missed, and the total is $1 million as of Monday. In case Simmons comes back, he will get the remainder of the money left in escrow.

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The Philadelphia 76ers decided to play hardball with their disgruntled star guard Ben Simmons. According to multiple reports, the 76ers have not paid the $8.25 million portion of the salary that Simmons was due to receive on Friday.

The 76ers opted to withhold Simmons’ salary after the All-Star failed to show up for the team’s training camp. The 25-year-old star is currently holding out in attempts to force a trade out of Philadelphia.

ESPN reports, based on sources close to the organization, that the 76ers have put the $8.25 million in an escrow. They will use the money to deduct any fine that Simmons might receive during his holdout. In case the player shows up at any point of the season, he will receive the money that is left in escrow.

However, everything is pointing out that Simmons has no intention to return. He is reportedly set on staying put until he gets traded and doesn’t want to play a single game for the 76ers anymore.

Philly, on the other hand, still hopes that they can turn around the situation and convince the player to re-join the team. At least, that is what president of basketball operations Daryl Morey told reporters in recent interviews.

“I think there’s a lot of hope,” Morey said when asked about Simmons’ return.

The Philadelphia 76ers have been talking with teams about Ben Simmons for the better part of the offseason but still haven’t found a trade they like. The 76ers reportedly want to get a star player that would help them win now, but those kinds of deals are not out there at the moment.

The post 76ers Not Paying Ben Simmons After His Refusal to Play appeared first on SportzBonanza.

The Philadelphia 76ers are still holding on All-Star guard Ben Simmons despite the player requesting a trade earlier in the offseason. The 76ers front office reportedly wants a significant haul to consider any deal for Simmons, and these demands have put off many of the interested teams. Well, except the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Cavaliers have made several approaches to the 76ers for Simmons in the past but haven’t managed to get a deal over the line. However, according to influential NBA correspondent Marc Stein, the Cavs don’t intend to quit so easily.

In his recent NBA Power Rankings piece, Stein said that league sources tell him Cleveland remains very interested in landing Simmons and will continue to make a push to land a player that would significantly speed up their rebuild process.

As Stein points out, Cleveland has the assets to make a deal for Simmons. They own all of their first-round picks moving forward and also have several young and exciting players that they might offer to Philly. This includes Lauri Markkanen, who signed a team-friendly contract with the franchise this offseason, and backcourt duo Darius Garland and Collin Sexton.

Another route that the Cavs might go is including Kevin Love in the deal for Simmons. Love still has two years on his four-year, $120 million contract but doesn’t seem to fit in the team’s plans, especially with an abundance of talented youngsters, such as this year’s No. 3 pick Evan Mobley, playing on his position.

It remains to be seen whether the Cavaliers can make an offer that will entice the 76ers. Philly’s president of basketball operations Daryl Morey is reportedly keeping his eyes on a superstar players like Bradley Beal or Damian Lillard and will hardly want to settle for anything else.

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Philadelphia 76ers star center Joel Embiid took to Twitter on Tuesday to set the record straight on the reported “rift” between him and teammate Ben Simmons. In a series of tweets, Embiid denied the reports while also stating that he loves playing with Simmons.

In an opinion piece published by USA Today, reporter Jeff Zillgitt at one point wrote that “Simmons-Embiid rift had been escalating” and cited “a person with knowledge of the situation” as his source. He also added that this forced Philly to choose between the two All-Stars and that the organization ended up favoring Embiid.

This didn’t sit well with Embiid, who retweeted the quote from the article and shared a lengthy response to the report.

“I love playing with Ben. Stats don’t lie. He’s an amazing player, and we all didn’t get the job done,” Embiid wrote.

Embiid followed this with a series of other tweets in which he accused the media of “making up stuff for followers” and reminded Philly fans about the times they booed him while telling them they “also gotta be better”.

“For clarity, I love the criticism, I love when I’m told I can’t do something. It makes me work harder to prove everyone wrong, but not everyone is built like that,” Embiid concluded his social media rant.

While Joel Embiid is fresh from his best season in the NBA, finishing second in MVP voting for 2020-21, Ben Simmons had his worst season as a pro.

Simmons finished the regular season with career-lows in points (14.3), rebounds (7.2), and assists (6.9). He followed this up with a meltdown in the postseason, managing only 11.9 points per game. The 25-year-old star especially struggled in the Eastern Conference Semifinals against the Atlanta Hawks, passing on open shots and failing to attempt a single fourth-quarter field goal in four of the seven games of the series.

During the offseason, Simmons reportedly approached the 76ers and asked them to trade him. The organization explored ways to accommodate his request but failed to find a trade they like so far.

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Philadelphia 76ers’ president of basketball operations Daryl Morey finally got his wish. The 76ers managed to swap disgruntled All-Star guard Ben Simmons for the Brooklyn Nets’ superstar and 2018’s NBA MVP James Harden.

The deal was finalized just before the NBA’s trade deadline on Thursday. Besides Simmons, the 76ers are sending marksman Seth Curry, center Andre Drummond, and two first-round picks to Brooklyn as well. On the other hand, veteran guard Paul Millsap will arrive in Philly alongside Harden. 

The 76ers and the Nets are content with the deal. Philadelphia managed to get Simmons, who asked to be traded in the summer, out of town while receiving a superstar in return. For Brooklyn, the deal was about moving an unhappy player in Harden and getting young and better defensively while also acquiring valuable picks.

Ben Simmons didn’t play at all in 2021-22, first refusing to join the team and then citing mental health as the roadblock on his return to court. The 25-year-old, who has three All-Star appearances on his resume, averaged 14.3 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 6.9 assists last season.

James Harden arrived in Brooklyn from the Houston Rockets in early 2021 and was supposed to be a part of the Nets’ three-headed monster alongside Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving. But injuries and other issues prevented the trio from showing what they were capable of. In the meantime, Harden became unhappy with his role on the team and reportedly welcomed the opportunity to go to Philly with great enthusiasm.

In Philadelphia, Harden will reunite with Morey, who also traded for him in 2012 while he was general manager of the Rockets. While the two were together in Houston, the Rockets never missed out on the playoffs while reaching two Western Conference Finals.

Harden is averaging 22.5 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 10.2 assists in 2021-22. He is set to become a free agent in the summer if he declines his player option and would be eligible to sign a five-year contract worth $275 million.

The post 76ers Swap Ben Simmons for James Harden in a Blockbuster Trade with Nets appeared first on SportzBonanza.

It appears that the Philadelphia 76ers lowered their demands in Ben Simmons trade talks. Despite previously insisting on an All-Star caliber player, the 76ers are now willing to accept a package that includes a reliable starter, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer‘s Keith Pompey.

Pompey reports that one of the discussions the 76ers had in recent days centered on a deal that would see Simmons go to the Detroit Pistons and forward Jerami Grant returning back to Philly. Grant, who emerged as the Pistons’ best player in the last couple of seasons, was drafted by the 76ers in 2014 and spent his first two years in NBA with the franchise.

The trade would also include Detroit sending other assets to Philadelphia. This would notably include a draft pick, a young player, and a forward. The 76ers reportedly identified Kelly Olynyk and Saddiq Bey as possible additions to the deal, but the Pistons are unwilling to part with either of them at the moment.

Ben Simmons asked the 76ers for a trade in the offseason and opted not to report to the team for the start of training camp. He ended his holdout in early October after the 76ers started fining him, but is yet to play a game in the 2021-22 season. The 25-year-old is currently out due to a lower back injury and mental health issues.

The 76ers are working the phones in the meantime and have a list of 30 players that they would accept for Simmons, according to The Athletic. Despite this, there is no indication that a potential deal will materialize anytime soon.

The post 76ers Considered Trading Ben Simmons for Pistons’ Jerami Grant appeared first on SportzBonanza.

It turns out that All-Star Ben Simmons might continue losing money despite rejoining the Philadelphia 76ers ahead of the start of the season. According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the 76ers intend to resume fining Simmons, this time for lack of cooperation with the team.

Simmons still hasn’t played a game with the 76ers in 2021-22 and has been a limited participant in the team’s activities so far. The 25-year-old reportedly told the team that he “wasn’t mentally prepared to play” and sought professional help. However, he refused any assistance from Philly and has been unwilling to share details about the process with the organization.

The player’s unwillingness to cooperate with the franchise has now prompted the 76ers to place his future salary into escrow with the intention to deduct fines from it. The first one will be for missing the game against the Detroit Pistons on Thursday.

Wojnarowski reports that Philadelphia plans to continue fining Simmons for every game he misses until he becomes more open to working with the team’s medical staff.

Being fined isn’t new for Ben Simmons, considering this was the tactic the 76ers used when he decided not to report for training camp in an effort to force a trade. Simmons reportedly lost $2 million before returning to the team, at which point the fines stopped coming in.

While the 76ers would like to get Simmons back on the floor at some point, he doesn’t seem open to the idea and is still only focused on getting out of Philadelphia. But it may be a while before this happens, considering that Philly continues to ask significant return for him in trade talks with other teams.   

The post 76ers Set to Fine Disgruntled All-Star Ben Simmons for Lack of Cooperation appeared first on SportzBonanza.

The most intriguing storyline of this year’s NBA offseason is receiving a new chapter. According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the Philadelphia 76ers’ disgruntled All-Star Ben Simmons has changed his stance and became more open to rejoining the team.

Simmons asked the 76ers to trade him in the summer and has remained away from the franchise through training camp and so far in the preseason. Previous reports indicated that the 25-year-old guard is determined not to play for the franchise anymore, but it appears that isn’t the case anymore.

Wojnarowski reports that Simmons’ representatives and the 76ers had positive talks over the weekend and that the player is willing to have a sit-down with Philly’s brass. If everything goes well, he could rejoin the team “as soon as this week.”

The 76ers were ready to respect Simmons’ request but were unable to find an acceptable trade offer. Most teams were willing to offer a picks-heavy package, while Philadelphia is interested in a deal that would include a star player and help them remain championship contenders.

When Simmons didn’t report to the team, the 76ers decided to withhold part of his salary and put the money in escrow. They proceeded to fine him for every preseason game he missed, and the total is $1 million as of Monday. In case Simmons comes back, he will get the remainder of the money left in escrow.

The post Ben Simmons Could Rejoin 76ers “As Soon As This Week” appeared first on SportzBonanza.

The Philadelphia 76ers decided to play hardball with their disgruntled star guard Ben Simmons. According to multiple reports, the 76ers have not paid the $8.25 million portion of the salary that Simmons was due to receive on Friday.

The 76ers opted to withhold Simmons’ salary after the All-Star failed to show up for the team’s training camp. The 25-year-old star is currently holding out in attempts to force a trade out of Philadelphia.

ESPN reports, based on sources close to the organization, that the 76ers have put the $8.25 million in an escrow. They will use the money to deduct any fine that Simmons might receive during his holdout. In case the player shows up at any point of the season, he will receive the money that is left in escrow.

However, everything is pointing out that Simmons has no intention to return. He is reportedly set on staying put until he gets traded and doesn’t want to play a single game for the 76ers anymore.

Philly, on the other hand, still hopes that they can turn around the situation and convince the player to re-join the team. At least, that is what president of basketball operations Daryl Morey told reporters in recent interviews.

“I think there’s a lot of hope,” Morey said when asked about Simmons’ return.

The Philadelphia 76ers have been talking with teams about Ben Simmons for the better part of the offseason but still haven’t found a trade they like. The 76ers reportedly want to get a star player that would help them win now, but those kinds of deals are not out there at the moment.

The post 76ers Not Paying Ben Simmons After His Refusal to Play appeared first on SportzBonanza.

The Philadelphia 76ers are still holding on All-Star guard Ben Simmons despite the player requesting a trade earlier in the offseason. The 76ers front office reportedly wants a significant haul to consider any deal for Simmons, and these demands have put off many of the interested teams. Well, except the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Cavaliers have made several approaches to the 76ers for Simmons in the past but haven’t managed to get a deal over the line. However, according to influential NBA correspondent Marc Stein, the Cavs don’t intend to quit so easily.

In his recent NBA Power Rankings piece, Stein said that league sources tell him Cleveland remains very interested in landing Simmons and will continue to make a push to land a player that would significantly speed up their rebuild process.

As Stein points out, Cleveland has the assets to make a deal for Simmons. They own all of their first-round picks moving forward and also have several young and exciting players that they might offer to Philly. This includes Lauri Markkanen, who signed a team-friendly contract with the franchise this offseason, and backcourt duo Darius Garland and Collin Sexton.

Another route that the Cavs might go is including Kevin Love in the deal for Simmons. Love still has two years on his four-year, $120 million contract but doesn’t seem to fit in the team’s plans, especially with an abundance of talented youngsters, such as this year’s No. 3 pick Evan Mobley, playing on his position.

It remains to be seen whether the Cavaliers can make an offer that will entice the 76ers. Philly’s president of basketball operations Daryl Morey is reportedly keeping his eyes on a superstar players like Bradley Beal or Damian Lillard and will hardly want to settle for anything else.

The post Cavaliers are Reportedly Still Trying to Land 76ers’ Ben Simmons appeared first on SportzBonanza.

Philadelphia 76ers star center Joel Embiid took to Twitter on Tuesday to set the record straight on the reported “rift” between him and teammate Ben Simmons. In a series of tweets, Embiid denied the reports while also stating that he loves playing with Simmons.

In an opinion piece published by USA Today, reporter Jeff Zillgitt at one point wrote that “Simmons-Embiid rift had been escalating” and cited “a person with knowledge of the situation” as his source. He also added that this forced Philly to choose between the two All-Stars and that the organization ended up favoring Embiid.

This didn’t sit well with Embiid, who retweeted the quote from the article and shared a lengthy response to the report.

“I love playing with Ben. Stats don’t lie. He’s an amazing player, and we all didn’t get the job done,” Embiid wrote.

Embiid followed this with a series of other tweets in which he accused the media of “making up stuff for followers” and reminded Philly fans about the times they booed him while telling them they “also gotta be better”.

“For clarity, I love the criticism, I love when I’m told I can’t do something. It makes me work harder to prove everyone wrong, but not everyone is built like that,” Embiid concluded his social media rant.

While Joel Embiid is fresh from his best season in the NBA, finishing second in MVP voting for 2020-21, Ben Simmons had his worst season as a pro.

Simmons finished the regular season with career-lows in points (14.3), rebounds (7.2), and assists (6.9). He followed this up with a meltdown in the postseason, managing only 11.9 points per game. The 25-year-old star especially struggled in the Eastern Conference Semifinals against the Atlanta Hawks, passing on open shots and failing to attempt a single fourth-quarter field goal in four of the seven games of the series.

During the offseason, Simmons reportedly approached the 76ers and asked them to trade him. The organization explored ways to accommodate his request but failed to find a trade they like so far.

The post 76ers Star Joel Embiid Denies “Rift” Between Him and Simmons appeared first on SportzBonanza.