Ben Simmons is not letting go of how things ended in Philadelphia.
In ESPN’s new documentary Being Ben, the former 76ers star goes straight at Doc Rivers, blaming his old coach for the way he was handled after the team’s stunning 2021 playoff exit. Simmons says Rivers’ public comments after the Game 7 loss to the Hawks felt like abandonment at the worst possible time.
“How did I feel? I was like, ‘What a piece of ‘s**t’.
When you have a relationship with somebody and they have your back, I think certain things are supposed to be handled certain ways. But then you also gotta look at it from the side of ‘He’s got a job.’
You know, he’s making his money.”
“He ain’t trying to lose his job or anything like that. So, when times get tough, people start panicking. People throw people under the bus, and that’s just - it’s just what happened.”
The comments reach back to a brutal night for the top-seeded 76ers. In Game 7 of the 2021 Eastern Conference semifinals, Philadelphia fell 103-96 to Atlanta, and Simmons’ offensive struggles were under the microscope throughout the series. The moment that stuck with everyone came late in the fourth quarter, when Simmons passed up what looked like a relatively uncontested dunk with less than four minutes left and instead got the ball to Matisse Thybulle, who was fouled.
That play became the symbol of the collapse, and the criticism only sharpened after the game when Rivers was asked if Simmons could be the starting point guard on a championship team.
“I don’t know that question or the answer to that right now. So I don’t know the answer to that,” Rivers responded.
Simmons clearly hasn’t forgotten that answer. Five years later, he still believes Rivers mishandled the situation, and the aftermath helped push him to request a trade the following offseason. He never suited up for Philadelphia again and was later sent to the Brooklyn Nets in February 2022 in the James Harden deal.
That was a stunning fall for a player who once looked like one of the league’s brightest young stars. Philadelphia made Simmons the No. 1 pick in the 2016 NBA Draft, and he went on to win Rookie of the Year in 2018. He added three All-Star nods and built a reputation as one of the NBA’s best all-around defenders.
Still, the questions around his game never went away, especially his shooting. Those issues, along with persistent back injuries and long absences, turned his career into a grind.
After stops with Brooklyn and the Los Angeles Clippers, Simmons spent more than a year out of the league before signing a one-year, $3.5 million deal with the Sacramento Kings in September 2026. He is now 30 and reportedly could start for Sacramento on opening night.
Rivers, meanwhile, left Philadelphia in 2023 and later coached the Milwaukee Bucks before leaving that job in 2026.
Being Ben is set to premiere on ESPN on October 18 and also looks at Simmons’ life away from the court, including his competitive fishing and the difficulties tied to his recovery. For Simmons, though, the 2021 collapse still sits front and center. Five years on, the sting is still there.
In Other News...
Hawks Sent An Early Rotation Message Fans Will Notice
The preseason finale against the Mavericks offered a useful glimpse at how the Hawks want to structure their second unit once the games start counting. Atlanta kept its starting five intact, but the bench pecking order was just as revealing, with Lu Dort leading the first wave off the sideline after his offseason arrival, then Aaron Wiggins, Jock Landale and rookie Kingston Flemings following in that order.
Flemings inclusion in that rotation was the part fans will notice most, especially with the Hawks looking to balance upside against experience behind their starters. The message was clear: this group is being sorted with an eye toward depth and flexibility, and the battle for minutes is already starting to take shape before the regular season opens. [Read more 🡒]
Hawks Enter Season With One Depth Concern Quin Snyder Can't Ignore
Atlantas preseason ended on a brighter note than it started, with four straight wins after an opening loss, and the Hawks did show signs of improved depth compared with a year ago. That matters for a team trying to build a cleaner, more stable rotation around Quin Snyder, especially with the regular season about to test how much of that preseason progress can carry over.
Even so, the roster still has some obvious pressure points, and the concern is less about the top of the lineup than what happens behind it. Small forward, power forward and center all look thin enough that an injury or two could force Atlanta into uncomfortable answers, which makes the early weeks a key measuring stick for how much trust Snyder can place in the bench and the back end of the frontcourt. [Read more 🡒]
Hawks Preseason Offered Real Hope But One Rotation Question Lingers
A 4-1 preseason record is easy to dismiss if you want to, especially for a team that only got its full lineup together once, but Atlanta at least gave itself a sturdy early case for optimism. The Hawks looked more organized, more dependable and, most importantly, deeper than a year ago, with the rotation expected to be steadier this season thanks to the added presence of Lu Dort, Aaron Wiggins and Jock Landale.
The biggest question left hanging is how the backcourt sorts itself out behind the starters, because the preseason gave the Hawks a mixed sample there. Rookie Kingston Flemings turned heads in a reserve role and looked comfortable running the second unit, while Dyson Daniels is still searching for rhythm as a shooter. Atlanta has reason to feel better about its bench than it did a year ago, but the exact pecking order in the guard rotation still needs a little more time to settle. [Read more 🡒]