Ben Simmons has lost over $19 million in fines this season

Simmons has lost over $19 million in fines since the season began (each missed game costs him $360,000). He hasn’t cleared a paycheck since the $8.25 million (25% of his $33 million salary) that was due to him Oct. 1. Every two weeks the team sends a notice with an explanation of all the fines he has accumulated for failing to render services, instead of a $1.375 million paycheck. By the end of the season, if he does not play for the Sixers or any other team, Simmons could lose another $12 million. It is a staggering amount of money. Everyone involved assumes this issue will eventually be settled in arbitration. But those close to Simmons, who has earned upward of $60 million over his career, insist his decision to demand a trade and then not to play until he is traded has never been financially motivated. He wants a fresh start, away from a franchise he doesn’t feel comfortable playing for anymore.
Source: Ramona Shelburne @ ESPN

What’s the buzz on Twitter?

Sopan Deb @SopanDeb
So Ben Simmons is upset that Doc Rivers didn’t show up unannounced to a gym he worked out at after ignoring several of Doc’s entreaties?
https://t.co/HtxuDuI8We pic.twitter.com/ve0rbyckDC – 12:24 PM

Kurt Helin @basketballtalk
Report: 76ers have fined Ben Simmons more than $19M – and counting nba.nbcsports.com/2022/02/01/rep… – 12:14 PM

Kyle Neubeck @KyleNeubeck
Every time people around Ben Simmons try to tell his side of the story, they only end up showing they don’t understand the problem at hand phillyvoice.com/ben-simmons-la… – 12:08 PM

Ramona Shelburne @ramonashelburne
Ben Simmons and the Philadelphia 76ers are stuck in a moment. espn.com/nba/insider/in… – 11:51 AM

Emiliano Carchia @Sportando
Ben Simmons reportedly fined $19 million since season started sportando.basketball/en/ben-simmons… – 11:45 AM

Jon Johnson @jonjohnsonwip
Correct me of I’m wrong, but didn’t Ben Simmons have the second worst +/- in the Raptors series, while Joel Embiid had by far the best?
And Ben’s stat line was nothing to gloat about. – 11:40 AM

Jon Johnson @jonjohnsonwip
Would like to thank Ben Simmons. If not for his thin skin, being incredibly selfish, the Sixers would not know what they have in Tyrese Maxey. – 10:25 AM

Derek Bodner @DerekBodnerNBA
Would holding on to Ben Simmons actually help the Sixers land James Harden?
Some stray, rambling thoughts in this morning’s newsletter on the latest developments in this strange saga.
dailysix.com/morning-sixers… – 1:07 PM

Mike Vorkunov @MikeVorkunov
Nikola Jokic now has 102 games with 10+ assists, which is most ever by a center. Wilt is No. 2; he’s at 80.
Jokic is averaging 9.9 assists over his last 14 games. List of players 6-10 and taller to ever average that many assists over that long a span: Jokic, Ben Simmons, Wilt. – 12:14 PM

Sirius XM NBA @SiriusXMNBA
“When it didn’t work out at the end of the summer, I think you have to move on”
@Hoophall and former #76ers Head Coach Larry Brown tells @talkhoops and @Amin Elhassan how he would have handled the Ben Simmons situation if he was the head coach pic.twitter.com/D8kAAvhdYu – 4:25 PM

Ryan McDonough @McDNBA
Tyrese Haliburton is going to be an All Star someday
The Kings are wise to keep him out of any Ben Simmons trade discussions – 9:49 PM

More on this storyline

According to sources close to Simmons, he’s upset that Embiid seemed to blame him for last season’s playoff loss, when Simmons did not blame Embiid for Embiid’s poor showing in the playoffs against the Toronto Raptors in 2019. He’s frustrated that Rivers didn’t come to see him while he was training in Los Angeles last summer. Simmons doesn’t dispute that he didn’t reply when Rivers texted and called him several times over the summer asking to see him. But in hindsight, Simmons feels Rivers and the Sixers could’ve done more, like show up at a well-known gym in the San Fernando Valley where he was training. -via ESPN / February 1, 2022

He’s also skeptical, sources close to him say, of Sixers president of basketball operations Daryl Morey’s willingness to trade him because of his previous pursuit of Harden — who can become a free agent this summer. Simmons would be the best player the Sixers would send in any theoretical trade. And he’s upset that the organization is fining him so heavily after he raised mental health as an issue upon his return. Rich Paul, Simmons’ agent, had spent weeks in the fall trying to convince the three-time All-Star to fly back to Philadelphia as a show of good faith. Simmons did not want to go under any circumstances. -via ESPN / February 1, 2022

“We don’t give a f— about the money,” one source close to Simmons says. “That’s not what this is. It’s hard for people to understand. But if you believe in what you’re doing and that this is not the right situation for you, and you’re trying to get to a better place, the money doesn’t matter. Obviously it’s a financial hit. But you adjust.” Said another source close to Simmons, “It’s easy to tell when someone is hurt when they have a cast on their arm. But this is mental health. You can’t always see it. But ask yourself, how many people would lose a dollar over this? That should tell you everything.” -via ESPN / February 1, 2022