READ MORE:<\/strong> NBA star frozen out over vaccination status<\/strong><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Whether he truly believed that or it was just public posturing, only Morey knows, but he said he thought a reconciliation with Simmons was possible.<\/p>\n "We expect him back. We expect him to a be a 76er,\u201d Morey said.<\/p>\n Morey did not address potential punishment against Simmons but said fines and suspensions were \u201cclearly spelled out in the (collective bargaining agreement).\u201d Morey cited Aaron Rodgers as an example of an athlete on the brink of a divorce with his team, only to work things out and thrive, as the quarterback has done with the Green Bay Packers.<\/p>\n The Sixers already are playing \u201cwhat if\u201d with Simmons.<\/p>\n Embiid wished he had to chance to sit down with Simmons and hash out any issues. Tobias Harris said he wished the team visited Simmons the day after the season ended and told him they all shared the blame in the Sixers\u2019 early postseason exit.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was not one guy who made mistakes,\u201d Harris said.<\/p>\n Simmons was not on the trading block until his representatives met with Morey over the summer and said the No. 1 pick in the 2016 draft wanted out. Coach Doc Rivers, perhaps Simmons\u2019 most ardent supporter, said Simmons and his representatives were light on specifics of the trade demand.<\/p>\n https:\/\/twitter.com\/WorldWideWob\/status\/1442518528574119943<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a tough answer, because it wasn\u2019t as clear as we probably would want it,\u201d Rivers said. \u201cIt\u2019s tough to play here, but Ben didn\u2019t say that. But you\u2019ve got to assume that\u2019s probably part of it. And I can\u2019t say he said that. That\u2019s just an assumption.\u201d<\/p>\n Morey said he last talked to Simmons\u2019 representatives about seven weeks ago.<\/p>\n Harris did not reveal details of his own conversations with Simmons but told the media \u201cyou already know.\u201d<\/p>\n The toxic mix for Simmons comes down to this: He\u2019s hurt by comments Rivers and Embiid made in the aftermath of the Game 7 loss and hurt by stinging criticism from media and fans and how he has shouldered the blame for the Sixers\u2019 playoff woes.<\/p>\n READ MORE:<\/strong> Ricciardo burned by 'clear' McLaren mistake<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n READ MORE:<\/strong> How medical miracle got fit for finals charge<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n His refusal to shoot beyond 15 feet and his postseason failures at the free-throw line have seemingly outweighed his assists, playmaking and a spot last season on the All-Defensive first team.<\/p>\n Embiid refused to back down from pinpointing Simmons\u2019 pass on a gimme-basket attempt because he thought he would get fouled late in Game 7 as the \u201cturning point\u201d in defeat.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat did I actually say? I don\u2019t think I said anything,\u201d he said. \u201cI was asked a question, you know, what was the turning point of the game? I really believed that it was the turning point of the game.\u201d<\/p>\n Embiid, though, made repeated references Monday to players needing more \u201cself-awareness."<\/p>\n Another sore subject is that Simmons was dangled as trade bait last season in a proposed deal with Houston for James Harden.<\/p>\n If trade rumors are an issue, Embiid says, get over it.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve all got to grow up,\u201d he said. \u201cI understand being in trade rumors, that\u2019s just part of the business. If Golden State came and offered Steph and Klay for me, you think the Sixers would say no to that? They\u2019ve got to say yes to that. I would say yes to that. How do you say no to that? That\u2019s what they do, they\u2019re always going to find ways to get better, so you can\u2019t get mad at that. That\u2019s just the way it is.\u201d<\/p>\n Embiid was among a small group of teammates rebuffed by Simmons in their attempt to visit the disgruntled guard and coax him back to Philly. Embiid said he would have told Simmons \u201che\u2019s disappointed\u201d in the situation and feels the Sixers are closer to an NBA title with the point guard on the team.<\/p>\n Embiid said he grew as close to Simmons last season as they\u2019d ever been.<\/p>\n \u201cIf I didn\u2019t like playing with him, I\u2019m honest, I would say,\u201d Embiid said. \u201cBut I do love playing with him because he adds so much to our team.\u201d<\/p>\n The 25-year-old from Australia shot 34% from the free-throw line in the postseason and was reluctant to attempt a shot from anywhere on the floor late in games. His defining moment as a Sixer came when he passed up a wide-open dunk against Atlanta that would have tied the game late in Game 7.<\/p>\n Rivers said the Sixers wanted Simmons to practice free throws.<\/p>\n \u201cWe wanted to put in work this summer, and through the year,\u201d Rivers said. \u201cIf we get him, we plan to keep working on it. I do think that would change his game a little bit.\u201d<\/p>\n With Simmons, the Sixers remain a contender in the Eastern Conference. Without him \u2014 and with Tyrese Maxey running the point \u2014 Morey better hope he can get a haul of picks and a star (or two) for Philly to stay on pace.<\/p>\n \u201cAs I told our guys, last year we almost pulled off, you know, really a miracle run,\u201d Rivers said.<\/p>\n A miracle?<\/p>\n The Sixers didn\u2019t draft Simmons and Embiid for miracles \u2014 even, as Rivers noted, they went far with a new coach in a funky NBA season \u2014 but they may need one this season if they want to make a run in the East.<\/p>\n It just won\u2019t happen this week.<\/p>\n \u201cWe start training camp tomorrow,\u201d Harris said, \u201cand I don\u2019t think he\u2019s coming through that door.\u201d<\/p>\n For a daily dose of the best of the breaking news and exclusive content from Wide World of Sports, subscribe to our newsletter by clicking here!<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons grew from lottery picks to All-Stars to franchise cornerstones getting paid max contracts together and \u2014 the thought was \u2014 […]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/135682"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=135682"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/135682\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":135684,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/135682\/revisions\/135684"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=135682"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=135682"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=135682"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}<\/p>\n
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