The drama surrounding Ben Simmons continues to drive headlines in the NBA, and now it’s permeating into the Brooklyn Nets locker room, according to The Athletic‘s Sam Amick and Shams Charania.
The Athletic reports that frustration over Simmons’s lack of consistent availability and his level of play has been “building in recent weeks within the organization.”
Simmons has already missed four games due to knee soreness this season, and since being traded to the Nets on Feb. 10, has only suited up for Brooklyn 10 times, all coming in 2022-23.
So far, he is averaging staggering career lows with 5.8 points, 6.1 rebounds, 5.6 assists and 1.1 steals in 26 minutes per game.
The basketball world has come to expect more of the two-time all-star, and his teammates have called him out in player-only meetings, according to The Athletic. In that meeting, forward Markieff Morris said the team needs Simmons to get through adversity better and be successful in order for the Nets to succeed, The Athletic reported.
“I get (the skepticism about my injuries), but I think the one thing with me is that I’m a competitor,” Simmons told The Athletic Tuesday after the Nets fell 153-121 to Sacramento. “I want to win and play. So I’m going to do what I can to get out there.”
Simmons went on to defend his knee injuries this season and why he has had to miss time… “You’re obviously not going to be happy when anybody’s out,” Simmons said. “But for me, I’ve been dealing with the knee since the start of the season. It’s been swollen. I had PRP (injections). I had blood drained a couple times. So it’s not a made-up thing, you know? It’s a real thing.”
In the last few seasons, the 26-year-old star has sat out for a multitude of reasons as he’s battled a back injury, and mental health issues after the 2021 playoffs, and is now dealing with this knee problem.
The Nets, who came into this season with title aspirations despite the drama surrounding the team, now sit 12th in the East with a 6-9 record.