The Philadelphia 76ers’ old pairing of Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons had the potential to be one of the NBA’s greatest tandems. Embiid was a star as a rookie, averaging over 20 points per game, then a year later, Simmons returned to health and made the NBA’s All-Rookie team.
When the duo were together, the 76ers combined to reach the postseason all four years. Yet, being eliminated in the Eastern Conference Semifinals by the Atlanta Hawks at the end of the 2020-21 season seemed to be the final straw.
In 2022, the 76ers traded Simmons, ending the 76ers’ experiment for good. At the time, many pointed the blame for the Sixers’ inability to reach the NBA Finals on Simmons and his lack of a shot, but Philadelphia hasn’t had any more success since the trade.
Now, three years after the trade, Embiid took some time to look back at his days playing alongside Simmons. To no surprise, the reigning NBA MVP had nothing but praise for his former teammate.
“I’ve always been one of those people that didn’t believe [Simmons] actually needed a jumper, like he was so good, he’s just a monster. Almost as fast as you (Maxey). I just believed that you know if he could find a way to get his free throws to 75-80% that woulda changed everything. You can talk about this could have happened, the mistakes that have been made during the draft of Mikal Bridges but that’s just one [of the many franchise mistakes]. But I think that’s the perfect match. I think that’s the one that got away. I just hate the fact that the way things happened.”
Joel Embiid on Ben Simmons
Simmons hasn’t been the same since his trade from the 76ers, seemingly constantly battling back injuries. His scoring average has been cut in half, from averaging 45.9 PPG with the 76ers to just 6.9 PPG with the Nets.
However, Simmons is pulling down a career-high 10.8 rebounds per game this season, albeit in a limited sample size of just six games. Yet, he no longer flirts with leading the NBA in steals, as he did in 2020, when he made his second of three All-Star appearances.
Today, Simmons may not be viewed as a candidate for the NBA’s All-Defense team, but he’s still played a key role with the Nets. Yet, it’s hard not to wonder if Simmons would still be matching the same numbers he used to put up during his days sharing the floor with Embiid. From the sound of it, Embiid would certainly go back and do things differently if he had the choice.
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