Nets star Kyrie Irving is going on the offensive -- in defense of embattled teammate Ben Simmons.
After the Nets' loss to the Bucks in Milwaukee on Wednesday night, Irving was asked about Simmons' latest middling performance.
Simmons, a three-time All-Star mustered just four points on 2-of-7 shooting from the field and miss both of his free throws, though he did manage to rack up nine assists, five rebounds, two steals and a block in 34 minutes.
But for Irving, the questions about Simmons' lackluster start to the season are unfair after he missed all of 2021-22 while holding out for a trade and dealing with mental health and back issues.
"You guys keep coming in here asking me like what about Ben? He hasn't played in two years. Give him give him a f--king chance. We stay on his s---. You just stay on him. We're just here to give him positive affirmations and just let him hoop."
Despite Irving going to bat for Simmons with reporters, Irving himself seemed to grow frustrated with Simmons during the loss to the Bucks. During the third quarter, Irving appeared to shout "Shoot it Ben!" when Simmons passed up a potential short-range shot from inside the paint.
Meanwhile the loss sent the Nets to a 1-3 start, not exactly what they had in mind after trying to change the narrative surrounding the team during the preseason.
Simmons has not played well overall, but to be fair, he looked better on Wednesday, dishing out some nice assists and playing solid defense. His plus-minus of +2 was tops among Nets starters.
Still, it has been a frustrating start for both Simmons and the Nets, and it seemed to boil over in the third quarter, when head coach Steve Nash for ejected after arguing a non-foul call on Giannis Antetokounmpo and then berating an official.
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