PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — The 76ers should be preparing for the first Eastern Conference Finals matchup against the Milwaukee Bucks. Instead, they're holding exit interviews and planning an offseason, with a lens expected to be trained on All-Star point guard Ben Simmons all through the summer. And fans are filling up talk radio phone lines with chatter about the likelihood of trading him.
On Monday, less than 24 hours after the Sixers' season crashed to an end, a moment of harmless small talk showed just how much it still stung.
"Hello, coach. I hope you are doing well," a well meaning reporter said before asking Doc Rivers a question.
"Of course I'm not doing well. Are you crazy?" Rivers said, gamely laughing and smiling.
Rivers and company say they have a plan to fix Simmons' weaknesses, which were all too evident in the Sixers' seven-game series loss to the Atlanta Hawks.
"I know exactly what we wanna do," he said. "I'm positive in Ben. I'm very bullish on Ben still, but there's work. There is. And Ben will be willing to do it."
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Whatever that plan might be, Rivers insisted they know what the right work is.
"There's areas that he can fix quickly, in my opinion, and get better in, that will take him to another level," he said.
It's fairly obvious what one of those areas is: "We're not hiding that Ben has to become a better free throw shooter."
Simmons making a couple free throws in a row should not be newsworthy. He admitted that his foul shooting struggles have been a mental hurdle.
Danny Green, who the Sixers sorely missed after a calf injury took him out of the Hawks series early in Game 3, insisted that the reason for the season's disappointing ending does not fall solely on Simmons' deficiencies.
"And I also think it's a mistake that people think he doesn't care. I guess by his tone, his mannerisms, whatever it may be, in press conference and by his actions," Green said. "You can see in his play that he cares. I think he might be a little afraid of certain things, but because of how his interviews go, he doesn't show much emotions. But, believe it or not, he cares. It hurts him more than anybody. He's a bigger critic than anybody of himself, and it hurts him deeply that he wasn't able to be himself and help this team win."
Some fans are frustrated by Simmons' lack of improvement. They're hoping the Sixers trade him and his expensive contract this offseason. Whether or not President of Basketball Operations Daryl Morey does that remains to be seen. Simmons, turning 25 this summer, is an extraordinary talent. Dropping him just five seasons after drafting him with the No. 1 overall pick would be unfortunate. However, if Simmons can turn around the weaknesses that have hindered his performance since entering the NBA, then the sky is the limit.
"After being here for a year, I really do believe we've identified 'what' and 'how,' and now we have to do the 'do' part," Rivers said. "We have to work to do it. It's not gonna be an easy job, but it's definitely a job that Ben can do."