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C’mon Doc!

AUTHOR
DATE
June 1, 2021

We are officially in politics territory when it comes to Ben Simmons. You have the hard-lefts and the hard-rights which unfortunately is only going to get worse as this playoff run continues. It was always bad, but we are hitting a new gear.

I really don’t see how this is hard to understand, but here we go.

After Game 1, Ben Simmons recorded 15 assists, 15 rebounds, and 6 points. He also ran away from late game possessions because he was 0-6 from the free throw line and scared to get fouled.

God forbid you fully analyze Ben, and everyone else, after a victory. I mentioned during the postgame show that what I saw late can potentially cost you a game down the road. I didn’t even expect it to necessarily be this series as the talent disparity is clear and obvious, but it sure showed up! It’s a major issue and that doesn’t take away from all of his positives that he provides on the floor. It also doesn’t make you a “Ben Simmons hater.”

I understand what Doc Rivers was trying to do postgame and it worked because we, as a city, are now complaining about his comments instead of directing ALL of our frustrations towards Simmons. To be fair, I didn’t expect Doc to throw Ben under the bus and rip him into shreds by any means, but he sounded delusional.

Let’s dive in.

Let’s start off with my favorite. “Unless you guys want us to bench him all game…”

C’mon Doc! Who is saying that?! Who is asking you to bench Ben Simmons for the entire game?! That’s asinine and you’re not even objectively listening to the media’s very fair questions. What bothers me is he is acting as if we don’t have the right to question what happened late. Are we supposed to walk around town with big smiles on our faces because our max-contract player and primary ball handler can’t operate in crunch time during the postseason? It’s only going to get magnified more as the competition picks up. Games will be closer and the talent on the other side will be stronger so if it’s going to be an issue against a Washington Wizards team…. get ready for the ride! This isn’t the LA Clippers anymore.

Yes Doc, it might be better for the team if you take Ben off the floor while the opposing squad plays Hack-A-Ben before the 2 minute mark. This is one of the reasons, so we thought, George Hill was added at the deadline. Nobody is surprised that this happened and you better think of a backup plan because sending him to the line over and over again may come back to bite you. I want Ben to succeed. I want him to knock down every shot, but he just isn’t there right now. Instead of focusing on his feelings it’s time to focus on winning a championship. He is a team player, right? “He does what’s best for the team!” That’s what I hear all the time after he dishes a bunch of assists without scoring in a win. He should acknowledge the clutch moments isn’t for him, at least for right now.

C’mon Doc! In what world is anyone upset with Ben Simmons not scoring 40 points last night?! We need him to HIT FREE THROWS LATE IN THE GAME WHEN THE OTHER TEAM SEES IT AS AN ADVANTAGE TO PUT HIM ON THE LINE!! How is that even close to the same scenario? Your team literally just lost a game because he continued to go 1 of 2 at the stripe.

There’s a ton of context with the outcome of Game 4. The refs were awful, Joel Embiid got hurt, Tobias Harris was super inefficient, and Seth Curry didn’t hit a three-pointer. With all of those factors, Ben Simmons could have walked up to the free throw line and shut everyone up.

He failed.

His inability to shoot a basketball has hurt this team for years now and to expect growth is not the fans’ fault.

Lol. While teams are banging 3s, the Sixers are okay with 1 point!

 

So let’s summarize a bit here: I enjoy Doc Rivers and Ben Simmons a lot. I am not demanding to ship Ben out of town or claim that he sucks. He is a unique player with an unreal skillset. He also is a HUGE liability in the playoffs, specifically in late-game moments. I don’t understand why it has to be so toxic where if you say one negative statement about the player, you hate him.

It’s not the truth. Big Ben Simmons fan here, but can we stop pretending like this isn’t an issue because he does everything else so well?

It’s very possible to have elite passing, elite defense, great rebounding, and offense. Don’t tell me it has to be a payoff.