Regretfully, Ben Simmons has been suspended due to his extramarital liaison with his teammate’s wife.
Simmons reportedly did not participate in practice and even objected to being substituted into a defensive drill. Eventually, Rivers pulled him out of the session and instructed him to go home. Simmons eventually received a suspension for the season’s first game after it was alleged that he dropped the ball and complied.
Since coming back, Simmons has not participated in training sessions physically or intellectually, according to NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski. After skipping the preseason, the 25-year-old returned to the Sixers last week in an effort to pressure the team that selected him first overall in 2016 to make a deal.
He was fined $360,000 for each of the four preseason games he missed for Philadelphia, in addition to additional costs for each practice he skipped.
Joel Embiid of the 76ers and Rivers made an effort to clarify the situation on Simmons’ behalf, even though he declined to speak with the media and stopped giving interviews. Embiid in particular gave a harsh evaluation of his teammate’s actions.
Rivers remarked, “I just felt he was a distraction today.” “I didn’t believe he wanted to follow in the footsteps of others. It was early. It was not a major issue. I’ve just instructed him to get out. We continued our practice.
“Every day, every single moment, I’m going to give Ben a chance to join the team and be part of the team,” Rivers said.
“He has a contract with the team, and that won’t be changing. Occasionally, it happens quickly, and the guys rejoin. It doesn’t always. I’m okay with having been in both scenarios.
“As a coach, my ultimate responsibility is to safeguard the team. Team first, followed by the other section. I felt that today, it was more crucial to concentrate on the team.”
