Sixers fine Simmons for refusing to travel with NBA team

By Can Erozden

ANKARA (AA) – The unrest between the Philadelphia 76ers and their Australian player Ben Simmons is still ongoing as the NBA team on Tuesday fined him "failing to travel" with them.

"The Philadelphia 76ers have fined Ben Simmons for failing to travel on their six-game road trip, sources say," NBA insider Shams Charania said on Twitter.

Charania said in a video that Simmons, 25, believes the 76ers are disregarding his mental problems and go on to "try to force him back on the floor despite his mental health concern."

Meanwhile the All-Star guard-forward's agent Rich Paul previously told US sports website The Athletic, where Charania works, that the fines imposed by the Sixers and "negative publicity" were made to urge Simmons to return to play.

Paul added that these sanctions are hurting him mentally.

In October, Simmons was dismissed from the 76ers training for "conducting detrimental to the team" as he missed the team's season opener.

Simmons did not play in the 2021-22 NBA regular season.

According to The Athletic, Simmons demanded a trade last season after the Sixers lost to the Atlanta Hawks 4-3 in the 2021 Eastern Conference semifinal series.

Simmons was under fire for his poor performance against the Hawks in the series, which was one of the main factors of Philadelphia's failure last season.

The top pick in the 2016 NBA draft, Simmons played 58 games and averaged 14.3 points, 7.2 rebounds and 6.9 assists in the 2020-21 season.

​​​​​​​He won the 2018 NBA Rookie of the Year award.

Philadelphia will go on their six-game road trip on Tuesday as they will respectively visit the Utah Jazz, the Denver Nuggets, the Portland Trail Blazers, the Sacramento Kings, and the Golden State Warriors.

Then they will return to Philadelphia to face the Minnesota Timberwolves on Nov. 27 at Wells Fargo Center.

In the Eastern Conference standings, the Sixers without Simmons are in the seventh spot with 8-6 win/loss record.

Philadelphia previously lost to the Indiana Pacers 118-113 in Indianapolis.