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Ben Simmons shrugged at the boos that went up from the Philly crowd every time the mercurial guard handled the ball.
The Nets guard even gave fans another cheer for their reception towards one of the most hated former Philly stars in sports history.
“I thought it would be louder,” Simmons said.
Tobias Harris scored 24 points and a spirited Philadelphia 76ers team played without Joel Embiid and James Harden spoiled Simmons’ homecoming with a 115-106 victory over Brooklyn on Tuesday night.
“I feel like this is a huge win for us,” said Harris. “I knew at the start of the game we would all come out with this kind of energy and this kind of buzz to get up and play.”
There was a lot of buzz from the moment the doors opened in anticipation of Simmons’ return. He had 11 points, 11 assists and seven rebounds tune of steady boos. Simmons even had a late-game fade known to the Sixers. He didn’t take a shot, went scoreless in the fourth quarter and only scored two points in the second half.
Ben Simmons was greeted warmly when he played against the Philadelphia 76ers on Tuesday
Simmons was targeted by 76ers fans all night as the Nets lost 115-106
Kyrie Irving scored 23 points and Kevin Durant had 20 before coach Jacque Vaughn withdrew his starting lineup with 3 minutes remaining.
“Everyone wants to see our team fail,” Durant said. ‘Nobody likes Ben. Nobody likes Ky. Nobody loves me.’
The anticipated big game was dimmed with Embiid out with a sprained left foot, Harden still out with a strained tendon in his right foot and starting guard Tyrese Maxey also out with a broken left foot.
Embiid vs. Simmons will have to wait, but fans of Simmons vs. 76ers were pretty good.
Simmons was yelled at, made a flagrant foul, silenced a sellout crowd of 20,184 on a layup, and even Jordan shrugged after making free throws. Of paramount importance to a player who has battled mental health issues, Simmons played evenly for most of his 32 minutes as the boos rained down on him.
“I feel like I’m in a good place,” Simmons said. ‘I’m happy. I do what I like. To be there and have that experience was amazing.”
He already had three assists going to the free throw line early in the game. Simmons was booed but never looked upset and sank both baskets. Simmons had a reverse layup minutes later for his first bucket.
Sixers fans were usually well-behaved – except for a few momentary “(expletive) Ben Simmons!” chants—and mostly saved the four-letter words for tape on the back of their old No. 25 jerseys.
Simmons and second-year Sixer Georges Niang argued late in the first half, and Niang gave his former teammate a slight stiff arm to the body that resulted in a technical foul.
Harden couldn’t believe the call from the bench. Sixers owner Josh Harris looked shocked.
Simmons missed the technical free throw and the crowd roared as loud as the entire game. However, Simmons took to the field for a bargain and hit the loose ball to Durant for a bucket.
The Sixers still took a 63–57 halftime lead.
It wasn’t all jeering, all play. Simmons caused 76ers fans to go wild when he missed consecutive free throws in the second half and kicked off a free fast food chicken promotion.
Simmons was welcomed by his old team – here he is pictured greeting Tobias Harris
Nets star Kevin Durant said after the game that ‘everyone wants to see our team fail’
“I thought he was in attack mode, he was aggressive and showed a lot of poise throughout the night,” said Vaughn. “The experience of coming through and getting it behind, really good.”
Simmons averaged 15.9 points, 8.1 rebounds and 7.7 assists over four seasons with Philadelphia, which lifted him from LSU, where he played only one season. His pervasive headaches, such as his refusal to shoot beyond 15 feet, outweighed his otherwise gifted defensive and playmaking talents. Simmons’ relationship with the Sixers deteriorated after the 2021 playoffs and he demanded a trade.
Simmons made a surprise return to the Sixers shortly before last season began, but was promptly kicked out of practice and suspended for one game. The punishment didn’t matter; the No. 1 pick of the 2016 draft never intended to play.
Simmons hugged Rivers in the handshake line and met friends and family sitting on the baseline before heading into the visitor’s tunnel – and a final chorus of boos.
“I think it will be forever,” Simmons said. “I really don’t see it changing.”