https://twitter.com/JoelEmbiid/status/1433067490481946626
https://twitter.com/JoelEmbiid/status/1433074232443944964
Embiid coming to Simmons' defense earlier today (sorry if I missed it, didn't see it posted). Not sure if it's true or he's just being a good guy about it, but good on him either way for backing up his teammate.
well yeah after he called him out and contributed a great deal to the current situation.
Embiid says he got booed and got better not exactly a ringing endorsement of Simmons.
Fans booing is no where near the same thing as your team's best player, coach, and executives singling you out and calling you out publicly. Fans boo all the time, your team doesn't throw you over the bus, run you over, and then back up over you and do it all over again. That is the reason Simmons wants out and doesn't want to report. That is the reason he wants out so bad he'd report to Minnesota, Cleveland, etc. He just wants away from an organization that doesn't want him and made it known to the world that they don't want him.
I feel kind of icky supporting Simmons as I really don't like him, but in this situation I totally get it. The Sixers created this mess and now must live with the consequences of their actions.
They needed to build around Simmons or Build around Embiid. They don't fit together and it's been known for a long time now. You are right the team, coach and Management threw Simmons under the bus and all they want now is to get assets for him. It's a mess.
The thing is on the court, the Simmons/Embiid duo actually has a very strong net rating (and has for years). Before the Butler trade, they actually had the team set up very well to maximize that lineup, but they made the Butler trade and changed the whole makeup of the team. They got antsy instead of just letting those 2 grow with a solid supporting cast (RoCo, Saric, and then shooters like JJ). They had the team set up better last year, but Curry and Green just weren't collectively good enough players in the backcourt and Harris is much more suited as a #3 scorer instead of the #2 scorer he is in Philly. The problem has never really been Embiid/Simmons, it has been how they've set the roster up around them that has been the biggest failure. And now they've spoiled Simmons to the point he wants nothing to do with anyone in the organization. Just complete and total mismanagement the last several years.
I was watching a game the other day of that Philly team before the Jimmy Butler trade and was taken aback at how good they were. I had completely forgotten how much shooting and firepower they had on that roster before they made those moves.
Redick, Covington and Saric next to Simmons and Embiid. So many awkward matchups for opponents in the open floor. Saric and Simmons with their ball-handling and passing at 6-10. Redick and Covington lighting it up from downtown.
I'm not saying they were better then than post-trade or even now but they were darn good. Much better than I had remembered.
And much more fun to watch as well. They really ran the floor and stretched out the court. Let Simmons drive more. More dribble hand offs between the perimeter guys and with Embiid pulling centers in and out of the paint. Unsettling team defenses with their movement and quick passing.
I do think they panicked some when they lost in 5 to the Celtics in the ECS in 2018. I think they, imo, incorrectly believed they couldn't get to the promised land with the team they had, so they started looking to move the supporting cast for a 3rd star. That might have worked had the 3rd star not been a terrible fit with Embiid and Simmons like Butler was, but I do think if they would have stayed the course, they would have been better in the long run. They also shouldn't have let Belinelli and Ilyasova leave. They provided such a nice dimension off the bench.
Embiid, Saric, Covington, Redick, and Simmons I do think should have been given at least 1 more year as a starting 5. Redick was getting older and would need to be replaced eventually, but you can always find a good shooting 5th man type player (I mean they have Curry right now - they also still had Fultz then, who was probably always going to at least be ok). Other than that though I liked the fit of that team. And Embiid/Simmons had an incredible net rating as a duo (I believe they led the league) because they had such great shooting and spacing around them. They've tried to mimic that again, but the players just aren't collectively as good (Harris obviously a better player, but they don't seem to really get the most out of him as he isn't a great fit).
I also think they dumped Fultz in another one of those panic type moves. They should have stayed the course with him.
They have really made a lot of confounding decisions that just don't make any sort of sense in either the short term or long term. I guess that is what happens when you leave a Colangelo in charge and then follow that up with a player that has no experience in the front office (Brand). Morey is a different sort of animal and he definitely understood what he needed to do (i.e. add shooting and spacing), he just didn't get good enough players. And the guy they should be looking to move is Harris not Simmons, but they've ruined the Simmons relationship so badly, they now have to move him (and won't get anywhere close to equal value).
Topic: Simmons Wants Trade / Not Going To Report To Camp (CBS Report) (Read 67783 times)