In May 2021, the NBA regular season ended. Ben Simmons had narrowly missed out on the title of best defender of the year to Rudy Gobert. But the Australian, considered Joel Embiid's lieutenant at the Sixers, had a huge following in the big league.
The origins of evil
Drafted No. 1 in 2016, he could only debut a year later in the NBA, having spent the first season dealing with injury issues. But in four seasons, he raised more optimism than doubts. If his shooting problems remained a recurring topic of discussion, his ability to defend in all positions, his all-around ability and his vision of the game were unanimous.
But that was before. Before the 2021 playoffs. Philly, number one in the Eastern Conference regular season, were miserably eliminated in the Conference Semifinals against the Atlanta Hawks. A shameful elimination by all accounts, given the way the seven games went.
But for coach Doc Rivers, the person responsible for the defeat was a certain Ben Simmons.
there was one action in particular, that was blamed on the point guard. A ball received under the basket, where he refused a ready-made shot, in order to pass to Matisse Thybulle, who was less well placed. The latter was fouled, but only made one of two free throws, when Philadelphia could have tied the game.
It didn't matter if Tobias Harris shot 8/24 that day, or if Embiid lost a crucial ball in the final moments. The culprit was designated, and we knew that day that Ben Simmons was highly unlikely to return to the Sixers.
A transfer for nothing?
And what happened next confirmed that. Simmons ended up asking to be transferred before the season resumed, mentioning that he had a mental block at the Sixers. The franchise, while not really opposed to his trade, made high, even exaggerated, demands to potential suitors. Was this to deter and show Simmons that only the 76ers wanted him? Perhaps, but that eventually didn't matter.
And that is because the 76ers benefited from the slump of another Eastern heavyweight: the Brooklyn Nets. At that moment - in February 2022 - while Simmons still hadn't set foot on the court, James Harden asked to leave Brooklyn. Immediately, the logic of a Harden-Simmons trade became apparent.
But it was only in the last hours before the trade deadline - the deadline for making transfers during the season - that the deal became official. Ben Simmons headed to Brooklyn with Seth Curry and Andre Drummond, in exchange for James Harden.
Soon, mockery erupted about the Nets losing out on the trade. The truth is that nobody really wins in a trade like this. All four sides had high demands, and in the end, everyone took what they were given.
Harden is no longer the sassy scorer of his Rockets years, lacks more and more consistency, and the link up with Embiid should be obvious on paper, but not on the court, as saw in the playoffs. Simmons wanted a franchise built for the title, but the Nets were poor in the last playoffs. Brooklyn and Philadelphia wanted the best deal possible for their players, but it was clear that the two franchises were not getting good deals and were expected to get bigger packages.
The Nets' farce
When he arrived in the Nets last February, Simmons was also bothered by back problems. It wasn't at all certain that he'd be back on the court during the season, which reinforced the "Nets lost the trade" angle.
And indeed, while there were whispers that he could return to the playoffs, the season would ultimately be a blank. To the great displeasure of Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, they were massacred by the Celtics in the first round (4-0).
The Nets' season was in any case a gigantic farce. Between Irving's refusal to land a shot, KD's injury when the Snake was on fire, Harden's request for a transfer because he was unhappy to have to carry the franchise on his shoulders, and this famous trade, nothing was going right in this season. And the conclusion was logical.
Hence the shockwave when Durant announced this summer that he wanted to leave the Nets. This turned the basketball world upside down. The potential compensation announced was enormous, and there was talk of a possible transfer of the century, as KD still had four years left on his contract.
All this was for nothing, as Durant, after a meeting with the owners and coach Steve Nash - who was also particularly criticised - made the decision to honour his contract and reaffirm his desire to help the franchise win. We almost wanted to believe it.
Nothing new on the horizon
And even if one wants to believe in it, the results at the beginning of the season prove the contrary. The Australian has not found the formula to become the third man the Nets were looking for.
After almost 18 months without an official game, his return has been scrutinised from every angle. And in today's cutthroat NBA world, every mistake takes on disproportionate proportions. Like Simmons' mistake against Ja Morant, which earned him his sixth foul and therefore his exclusion from the game.
Two exclusions for six fouls in the first three games of the season. For a renowned defender like him, it's hilarious. Speaking of defence, it was assumed that Simmons would take care of the opposing team's best player during games, as he was so praised for his ability to defend all five positions.
The stats for the opponent's best player in the Nets' five games are unmistakable:
Zion Williamson: 25 pts at 50% on the shot, Pascal Siakam: 37 pts at 71%, Ja Morant - 38 pts at 54%, Giannis Antetokounmpo: 43 pts at 64%, Luka Doncic: 41 pts at 50%.
If you can't defend well, you might as well contribute offensively. But again, the problem is that 5.6 pts at 44% shooting is not good enough.
As we saw, just Durant and Irving will not be enough to win games. A glaring example came against the Grizzlies, where both scored 37 points, while on the other side, Ja Morant and Desmond Bane put up 38 points each. A third man could have tipped the scales, and given his status and contract, Simmons should have been the one.
So maybe, just maybe, it's too early to draw any conclusions. After all, five games out of 82 is not a lot. The Nets and Simmons have time to turn things around. But everything moves very fast, too fast, in the NBA. The chemistry between the three major players isn't there. The Nets' defence is a permanent work in progress. The role players are not at the expected level. Steve Nash is still in the hot seat.
And Ben Simmons? It seems like expectations are getting lower by the day. If he was back to averaging 15 points, and with decent defense, everyone would be shouting Hallelujah. Whereas a #1 draft pick, an all-star, needs to do more. Announced as the future LeBron, the future of the big league, the Australian is now at the bottom of the hole. It's up to him to prove that he belongs in the class of champions. If not, he could become one of the biggest wastes of the last ten years.
