Simmons met with Sixers, said he's not mentally prepared to play, reports say
PHILADELPHIA - Philadelphia 76ers guard Ben Simmons reported to shootaround on Friday and met with the team in an attempted mea culpa, but said he is not mentally prepared to rejoin the team at this time, according to The Athletic's Shams Charania.
A league source told Charania that Joel Embiid and head coach Doc Rivers were at the Friday morning meeting where Simmons "accepted everyone needs to take responsibility, including himself."
He was reportedly seen at shootaround engaging with his teammates, according to The Athletic. Simmons expressed his interest in playing but said he is not mentally prepared.
Simmons, a three-time All-Star, added another chapter to the drama surrounding his holdout on Thursday when he was a no-show at practice. On Tuesday, Rivers reportedly booted Simmons from practice when he refused to join a defensive drill.
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Ben Simmons unlikely to play Friday after missing workout Thursday, reports say
Ben Simmons' status for Friday's game remains up in the air after he reportedly missed an individual workout at the team's practice facility on Thursday.
"I just thought he was a distraction today," Rivers said Tuesday after practice. "I didn’t think he wanted to do what everybody else was doing. It was early. It wasn’t a big deal. I just told him he should leave. We went on with practice."
He was later suspended for the team's season-opener against New Orleans, a game the Sixers won handily 117-97.
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