Ben Simmons had arguably his best game as a Net on Tuesday night, finishing with 11 points while shooting 5-for-7 from the field, his first game logging double-digit points in a year and a half.
But Brooklyn lost by 32 to the Kings, and Simmons, who has already missed time this season with a sore knee and has largely struggled in his very short Brooklyn tenure, is reportedly not inspiring a lot of hope in his team.
According to Shams Charania and Sam Amick of The Athletic, “frustration” surrounding Simmons “has been building in recent weeks within the organization,” which bet on Simmons to be a pillar of the team’s facilitating on offense and top perimeter defender when it traded James Harden for Simmons last year. According to the report, coaching staff and players have even questioned Simmons’ “passion for the game,” while showing concern about his availability.
Per the report, Simmons was also called out in a players-only meeting on Oct. 29, when Markieff Morries spoke on how the Nets need Simmons to better respond to “adversity” he faces off the court, but Simmons responsive to the call-out.
Simmons didn’t play at all last year after back flare-ups derailed his conditioning work as he tried to get back into game shape following a hold-out with the 76ers, and Simmons doesn’t necessarily expect teammates to fully believe the ailments that have hung over him over the last few years.
“There’s times when I couldn’t walk,” Simmons told The Athletic. “I had a dead foot. Couldn’t sleep. A lot of stuff was going on with me, physically, to where it was tough. But there’s only so much I can say for somebody to believe, you know?”
Follow Ryan Chichester on Twitter: @ryanchichester1
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