More than five years later, Ben Simmons still remembers exactly how he felt when Doc Rivers publicly questioned whether he could be the point guard on a championship team.
In ESPN’s new E60 documentary Being Ben, Simmons revisits the Philadelphia 76ers’ crushing Game 7 loss to the Atlanta Hawks in the 2021 Eastern Conference semifinals and the fallout that followed. The series became a turning point in Simmons’ career, with his decision to pass out of an open dunk opportunity late in the fourth quarter becoming one of the most replayed and scrutinized moments of that postseason.
After the loss, Rivers was asked whether Simmons could be the point guard on a championship team. His answer – that he did not know at that moment – quickly became part of the larger controversy surrounding Simmons’ future in Philadelphia.
In the documentary, Simmons makes clear how personally he took the response.
“How did I feel? I was like, ‘What a piece of shit,’” Simmons said of Rivers.
He then explained that, in his view, certain issues should have been handled privately because of the relationship he believed he had with his coach.
“When you have a relationship with somebody, and they have your back, I think certain things are supposed to be handled certain ways,” Simmons said.
He also acknowledged Rivers’ position, noting that coaches are under pressure to protect their own jobs when a season ends badly.
Simmons ultimately described the situation as one in which people began protecting themselves as the pressure mounted.
“When times get tough, people start panicking. People throw people under the bus, and that’s just – it’s just what happened,” he said.
The 2021 loss marked the beginning of the end of Simmons’ time in Philadelphia. He requested a trade that offseason, and the relationship between him and the franchise deteriorated before he was eventually moved to Brooklyn in February 2022.
Being Ben, produced by ESPN’s E60 in association with Andscape, examines the full arc of Simmons’ career, from his rise as the No. 1 pick and three-time All-Star to the injuries, public criticism and career instability that followed. The documentary also features interviews with Rivers, Danny Green, Trae Young and others who were directly connected to that period.
