Doc Rivers Takes Subtle Dig At Ben Simmons In Post-Game Comments

 

Everything is going along quite well these days for the Philadelphia 76ers. On the court, that is. While they continue to make do without disgruntled and absent teammate Ben Simmons, and more recently even without Tobias Harris due to health & safety protocols, the Sixers have now won five straight, and sit at the top of the Eastern Conference at 7-2. 

After their latest win, Thursday night over the hapless Detroit Pistons, Sixers coach Doc Rivers, who's been front-and-center in the whole Ben Simmons Drama, said of his team, "This group is really close, they don’t have any distractions, and they play hard.”

Wait...they "don't have any distractions"? Of course, the distraction of the Simmons Saga has been hanging over Philly since July, as he's demanded a trade, and is now refusing to play over a lack of "mental readiness." 

Rivers' comment can easily be construed as a not-so-thinly-veiled dig at Simmons, whose entire goal this offseason seems to have been to cause as much distraction as possible for the Sixers so that they'll finally give in to his demands and trade him. 

But GM Daryl Morey continues to call Simmons' bluff. He's said he can wait this out for the four remaining years on Simmons' contract, if need be, or until he can get in return what he perceives as "a difference-maker" in a trade. 

One could surmise that Rivers continuing to throw shade at Simmons isn't going to help the matter.  

Photo Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports