After reports last week indicated that Nets star Ben Simmons would make his team debut in Monday’s Game 4 against the Celtics, Simmons was officially ruled out for the game after waking up with back pain Sunday morning.
The latest turn in the Simmons saga has left the team “exasperated” as Brooklyn looks to avoid a season-ending sweep at the hands of Boston on Monday night.
“When I checked in on this yesterday, basically what I got was exasperation,” ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said on Monday morning’s edition of Get Up.
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“People involved here are exasperated by this saga because that is what it is. I got the feeling yesterday that it was like waving a white flag,” Windhorst continued. “I know that this might have the appearance of Ben Simmons saying, ‘I don’t want to play, we’re down 3–0,’ but he woke up yesterday with his back hurting. That is what I have been told, and it’s just as simple as that.”
Boston holds a 3–0 series lead entering Monday night. The winner of the first-round matchup between the Nets and Celtics will face either the Bucks or Bulls in the Eastern Conference semifinals.
