Ben Simmons formally demands trade

[tlance]

Fair enough. I think the line you’re drawing is just semantics and not an important factor. I think what’s important is that this looks incredibly shady and we are talking about a very real disease we have gotten better as a society in paying attention to and a guy like this comes along and he selfishly threatens those gains by seemingly mocking it in self interest. That’s why people are pushing back on this. And I’ll agree with you on the fact that it doesn’t help that he is an unpopular figure to begin with when he goes down that road and that also impacts the way the public digests this.

IF he is faking it.

IF.

Looks bad. But that doesn’t mean it isn’t real.

 

[fightinfunbags]

IF he is faking it.

IF.

Looks bad. But that doesn’t mean it isn’t real.

I think the only thing that could possibly be established is something that resembles Mackey Sasser’s yips (remember that dude?) when it comes to his free throw shooting. That sort of thing has an impact on his game but not in the traditional sense of what society calls a mental health issue. It would have been nearly impossible for him to impact that condition playing in Philly and he needs a change of scenery to do that. But I don’t think that’s what Simmons is claiming. It seems like he is claiming the anxiety/depression angle. That’s something that millions of people really struggle with. That’s why Simmons actions are below the belt here. It’s a bad look and when compounded with the other things that have made Ben Simmons the public figure it further entrenches him as a figure that looks to be more “villain” in the public eye especially in the eyes of casuals. And when people see his relatively quick return to the court that condition will be even more so.

 

[704Tarheels]

IF he is faking it.

IF.

Looks bad. But that doesn’t mean it isn’t real.

I think the fact that he would lie about having a mental illness (if that's what is happening) is a sign that something's up with him. It's definitely not something that most people would resort to in order to achieve some sort of personal gain.

 

[fightinfunbags]

I think the fact that he would lie about having a mental illness (if that's what is happening) is a sign that something's up with him. It's definitely not something that most people would resort to in order to achieve some sort of personal gain.

It’s a selfish person who doesn’t care about crossing a line. His motivation isn’t devious. It’s to get money. Millions of dollars of money. We’d like to think we wouldn’t cross that line but that’s a shit ton of money at stake. My father taught me when I was young that if you wanted to unravel the why in nearly every situation, follow the money and that guidance has held true at an outrageous clip throughout my life. It’s always about the money.

 

[tlance]

I think the only thing that could possibly be established is something that resembles Mackey Sasser’s yips (remember that dude?) when it comes to his free throw shooting. That sort of thing has an impact on his game but not in the traditional sense of what society calls a mental health issue. It would have been nearly impossible for him to impact that condition playing in Philly and he needs a change of scenery to do that. But I don’t think that’s what Simmons is claiming. It seems like he is claiming the anxiety/depression angle. That’s something that millions of people really struggle with. That’s why Simmons actions are below the belt here. It’s a bad look and when compounded with the other things that have made Ben Simmons the public figure it further entrenches him as a figure that looks to be more “villain” in the public eye especially in the eyes of casuals. And when people see his relatively quick return to the court that condition will be even more so.

How do you know Simmons isn’t suffering from depression?

If he returns to play after the all star break at peak form, I agree it will look bad.

 

[tlance]

I think the only thing that could possibly be established is something that resembles Mackey Sasser’s yips (remember that dude?) when it comes to his free throw shooting. That sort of thing has an impact on his game but not in the traditional sense of what society calls a mental health issue. It would have been nearly impossible for him to impact that condition playing in Philly and he needs a change of scenery to do that. But I don’t think that’s what Simmons is claiming. It seems like he is claiming the anxiety/depression angle. That’s something that millions of people really struggle with. That’s why Simmons actions are below the belt here. It’s a bad look and when compounded with the other things that have made Ben Simmons the public figure it further entrenches him as a figure that looks to be more “villain” in the public eye especially in the eyes of casuals. And when people see his relatively quick return to the court that condition will be even more so.

Also, I think most humans would be anxious about playing in Philly after everything that went down.

That shouldn’t be a tough sell.

If he shows up first road game there and drops a massive triple double, then yeah. He was probably faking.

 

[fightinfunbags]

How do you know Simmons isn’t suffering from depression?

If he returns to play after the all star break at peak form, I agree it will look bad.

Because of the convenient correlation that allows him to exploit a loophole to get money.

 

[thunderc]

Impossible to say though.

And my point all along is that the people talking like they “know” don’t know anything at all.

Of course it looks bad.

But he also went through a ton of adversity since his playoff struggles that would at the very least cause a ton of stress and anxiety for ANYBODY.

Not a huge leap to think it is possible he has some real stuff going on.

Yea it’s real, embarrassment

 

[Iggloo]

Also, I think most humans would be anxious about playing in Philly after everything that went down.

That shouldn’t be a tough sell.

If he shows up first road game there and drops a massive triple double, then yeah. He was probably faking.

My guess is that Simmons is a coddled, mentally weak guy who hasn't faced much real adversity, ever. But that's not mental illness. That is immaturity. It's wrong to equate the two and you should know better if you consider yourself a mental health advocate.

Even when he was pulling his shit at LSU he still was considered a high lottery pick and went #1 overall. So to be embarrassed on national TV, have a passionate fan base call him a bum--I am sure it all affected him, as it would most players.

But...most guys would cry, go back into the gym in the offseason, take the criticism to heart (even if they disagreed with it) and come out and play. Tobias Harris has been dragged through the mud in Philly this season for example, because he was playing very poorly. Fans booed him during home games, and he reacted at one point, showing it was getting to him. But...he kind of sucked it up and started playing better after a while. The whole thing has blown over.

Simmons immediately went home and demanded a trade. That's not mental illness, it is entitlement and softness, and they are not the same.

 

[Iggloo]

As for Maxey, he is not a catch and shoot player at this time. He can do it, but is not a sniper like Seth Curry or JJ Reddick. His skill set is driving, penetrating quickly to put up a floater or bank shot before the bigs in the interior can react, taking the step-back 3, etc. I am not saying he is this level of player yet, but Maxey's skill set is reminiscent of a Dwayne Wade.

It's a pretty darn good offensive skill set, and I think it complements Harden because Harden and Embiid, who have a tendency to get winded, can kick the ball to the kid and let him generate his own offense and attack during certain possessions. He's absolutely dynamite going end to end on the floor. He had a couple buckets before halftime against OKC last night where I was like, wow, how many guys can go end to end that quickly?

 

[bksballer89]

 

[tlance]

My guess is that Simmons is a coddled, mentally weak guy who hasn't faced much real adversity, ever. But that's not mental illness. That is immaturity. It's wrong to equate the two and you should know better if you consider yourself a mental health advocate.

Even when he was pulling his shit at LSU he still was considered a high lottery pick and went #1 overall. So to be embarrassed on national TV, have a passionate fan base call him a bum--I am sure it all affected him, as it would most players.

But...most guys would cry, go back into the gym in the offseason, take the criticism to heart (even if they disagreed with it) and come out and play. Tobias Harris has been dragged through the mud in Philly this season for example, because he was playing very poorly. Fans booed him during home games, and he reacted at one point, showing it was getting to him. But...he kind of sucked it up and started playing better after a while. The whole thing has blown over.

Simmons immediately went home and demanded a trade. That's not mental illness, it is entitlement and softness, and they are not the same.

You might be 100% right.

But you don’t know for sure. And you can’t know for sure.

And softness, mental weakness etc. can absolutely lead to some actual anxiety/depression in an extremely toxic environment. Which Philly has become for Ben Simmons.

 

[Wamu]

You might be 100% right.

But you don’t know for sure. And you can’t know for sure.

And softness, mental weakness etc. can absolutely lead to some actual anxiety/depression in an extremely toxic environment. Which Philly has become for Ben Simmons.

Did Simmons have these depression issues before or after he said he'd never play for the 76ers again?

If it was after I question the legitimacy of his claim.

 

[thunderc]

You might be 100% right.

But you don’t know for sure. And you can’t know for sure.

And softness, mental weakness etc. can absolutely lead to some actual anxiety/depression in an extremely toxic environment. Which Philly has become for Ben Simmons.

And you don’t know 100 % that he doesn’t know 100 %. See how that works?

 

[tlance]

And you don’t know 100 % that he doesn’t know 100 %. See how that works?

Yeah, I do actually.

Unless he is Ben Simmons’ therapist he doesn’t know a damn thing about this.

 

[thunderc]

Yeah, I do actually.

Unless he is Ben Simmons’ therapist he doesn’t know a damn thing about this.

I do, but I have a knack for using my noggin

 

[tlance]

Did Simmons have these depression issues before or after he said he'd never play for the 76ers again?

If it was after I question the legitimacy of his claim.

If it is legit?

Before.

My theory is this. He might be making it up. But there is a plausible explanation for all his behavior.

The unwillingness to shoot in NBA games when we have seen clips of him making shots during pick up games seems like it could be a sign of anxiety disorder.

If that is the case, it was at its worst during the 2021 playoffs. And when Ben was at his all time low, first Embiid, then Doc, then all the Philly fans shitted on him.

That could lead to depression. Which would explain why he refused to see or speak to teammates, and why he said he would never play in Philly again.

I don’t know that is what happened, but it is a plausible timeline IF his mental health claims are legit.

 

[Wamu]

If it is legit?

Before.

My theory is this. He might be making it up. But there is a plausible explanation for all his behavior.

The unwillingness to shoot in NBA games when we have seen clips of him making shots during pick up games seems like it could be a sign of anxiety disorder.

If that is the case, it was at its worst during the 2021 playoffs. And when Ben was at his all time low, first Embiid, then Doc, then all the Philly fans shitted on him.

That could lead to depression. Which would explain why he refused to see or speak to teammates, and why he said he would never play in Philly again.

I don’t know that is what happened, but it is a plausible timeline IF his mental health claims are legit.

Didn't Embiid, Doc & the Philly fans shit on him after he said he'd never play for the 76ers again?

I would never make fun of anyone suffering from depression. But I don't recall this being an issue for Ben until after he said he wanted outta Philly. It makes me wonder how legit his claims are.

If my timing is off and he made these claims before he refused to play that changes things though.

 

[tlance]

Didn't Embiid, Doc & the Philly fans shit on him after he said he'd never play for the 76ers again?

I would never make fun of anyone suffering from depression. But I don't recall this being an issue for Ben until after he said he wanted outta Philly. It makes me wonder how legit his claims are.

If my timing is off and he made these claims before he refused to play that changes things though.

No.

They shit on him right after the playoff loss.

He didn’t say anything about not wanting to play for Philly until much later. Over the summer. By then it could have been an issue.

 

[tlance]

Amen.