By Anthony Caruso III | Publisher
Brooklyn Nets star Ben Simmons now knows what he is going to face each time that he returns to the City of Brotherly Love. For him, they are not going to show him any love.
He had 11 points in his first game back at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia. This was his fourth straight game in double figures.
“That’s at every arena,” Nets star Kevin Durant said of Simmons’ return to Philadelphia. “Everybody wants to see our team fail. Nobody likes Ben. Nobody likes [Kyrie]. Nobody likes myself. It might be like that at every road arena. It’s just something we gotta deal with”
He did the Michael Jordan shrug in the first half following a free throw attempt. According to SportsCenter, he also put his finger in front of his mouth to try to silence the crowd.
“I thought it was going to be louder,” Simmons said of the boos after the game.
Simmons had a love-hate relationship with the 76ers fans. He took a lot of heat after he struggled with his shooting.
He refused to take shots in the 76ers Game 7 loss to the Atlanta Hawks. This caused so much hatred for Simmons.
The former No. 1 overall pick in the 2016 NBA Draft had just five points in Game 7 against the Hawks. He had four shot attempts in nearly 36 minutes in the game.
Eventually, the 76ers and Simmons decided that it was in their best interest to part ways. He was suspended and fined extensively for every missed game before the trade.
He had many incidents with head coach Doc Rivers before the trade to the Nets.
In February 2021, Simmons along with Seth Curry and Andre Drummond, a 2022 or 2023 first-round draft pick were traded to the Nets for James Harden and Paul Millsap. Simmons for his wish for a fresh start.
However, as long as he’s still in the league and has to play in Philadelphia, he will be public enemy No. 1. Simmons is the latest athlete to receive hatred from the 76ers fans.
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