The Ben Simmons Saga continues to rage on as the Philadelphia 76ers walk a fine line between appeasing their mercurial star while also fielding trade offers to appease his initial demands. The team has taken a real “carrot and the stick” approach to Simmons, sometimes punishing him while also supporting him through mental health issues.
The presumption is that the longer this goes on and the more Simmons reveals about his inability to get out on the floor in Philly, the less desirable he’ll be to potential trade partners. However, that doesn’t appear to be ending his chances of getting traded altogether.
According to The Athletic’s Shams Charania, the Boston Celtics are interested in potentially acquiring Simmons.
“The Celtics have expressed interest in a trade for Ben Simmons and engaged in conversations with the Sixers,” wrote Charania. “There remains no imminent resolution between Simmons and the Sixers as far as a trade is concerned.”
As far as what those trade details would be, there’s no word other than that the Celtics would have to include star forward Jaylen Brown, which feels unlikely but then again who knows.
There were some immediate reactions from the Celtics world regarding the potential news that Boston would want to trade for Simmons. It wasn’t good.
“Hey, Daryl, it’s Brad.”
“Hey.”
“What’s going on with that guy who quit on your team and now does the bare minimum and completely torpedoed his trade value? Any interest in discussing a deal?”
“We’d want Jaylen Brown.”
“OK, I’m hanging up. Have a great rest of the day!”
— Bill Simmons (@BillSimmons) November 8, 2021
Do not want
— CelticsBlog (@celticsblog) November 8, 2021
I think I’m gonna get sick https://t.co/RCCfopRpoP
— Boston Diehards (@Boston_Diehards) November 8, 2021
Not only would the Celtics have to give up a lot to get Simmons, but it’s also a move that’s likely to be very unpopular with its fanbase. So…not really sure why they’d want to do it, especially with the knowledge that Simmons could repeat this cycle again in a couple of years if he’s not happy.
