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With former Philadelphia 76ers star Ben Simmons‘ contract about to expire, the Brooklyn Nets have an opportunity on their hands. They could potentially use this to their advantage.
In a March 29 story, Bleacher Report’s Greg Swartz outlined the following trade that would send Simmons to the Atlanta Hawks.
Hawks receive: Simmons, 2025 first-round pick (unprotected via Phoenix Suns), 2026 and 2028 second-round picks
Nets receive: Bogdan Bogdanovic, De’Andre Hunter
Swartz explained why Simmons would factor into this trade.
“For the Hawks, this would be a financial reset that sets them up nicely for the 2025 offseason. By swapping two players under long-term deals for Simmons’ expiring contract, Atlanta would clear $39 million in salary. Add in Clint Capela’s expiring deal, and the Hawks would be shedding $61.3 million from their books in 2025.”
Simmons will enter the last of a five-year, $177 million contract extension, where he’ll be paid $40.3 million. A deal like this would further demonstrate how far Simmons has fallen in the NBA. Since the Nets acquired him from the Sixers in 2022, he’s played a grand total of 57 games.
The Sixers may have been the ones who gave him that contract, but they only had it on their books for one-and-a-half seasons.
Shaquille O’Neal Has Harsh Words for Ben Simmons
Among those who are not fans of Simmons is NBA Hall-of-Famer Shaquille O’Neal. On O’Neal’s podcast, he explained why Simmons is the one player he would pay good money to see for entertainment purposes. In short, he criticized Simmons for missing games despite how much he’s paid.
“Because I would want to learn how you can make $80 million and play 55 games. Teach me,” O’Neal said, per The Big Podcast’s X account. “Teach me how you could play 55 games in three seasons and get $30 million, $40 million, and get another $40 million just by saying your back hurt. Get some f***ing Icy Hot. Man up.”
Since the Sixers traded Simmons to the Nets, he has been nowhere near the same player he was in Philadelphia. During his five years with the Sixers, he won Rookie of the Year, made three All-Star teams, made two All-Defense teams, and an All-NBA team.
Simmons’ lack of availability has prevented him from returning to form. If he continues to miss games, that could also be out of the question.
James Harden Responds to Sixers Fans Boos
Simmons may not have worked out the way the Sixers would have liked, but at least they avoided all of the turmoil the Nets have gone through with him. At the same time, the James Harden experiment did not work out either. Sixers fans let him know it when he came back to Philadelphia.
After the Clippers beat the Sixers, Harden admitted to reporters that he expected to be booed but didn’t understand the reaction.
“I mean, I expected it. I really don’t know what it was about, but I expected it,” Harden told reporters, per NBC Sports Philadelphia’s X account. “So it is what it is. I don’t even know why they were booing. If you ask them, I mean, they probably don’t know why they were booing.”
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