NBA Hoops

Boo Simmons: Nets guard jeered in 1st game in Philly

Boo Simmons: Nets guard jeered in 1st game in Philly

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Yup, Ben Simmons got booed.

One of the most reviled former players in Philadelphia’s sports history got the hostile homecoming the Brooklyn Nets guard expected in his first game in the city since his former team acquiesced to his trade demand in February.

Simmons was voraciously booed from the moment he stepped on the Wells Fargo Center court for warmups against the 76ers to the first time he brought up the ball against his former franchise.

“This is a Vince Vaughn earmuffs night,” Nets coach Jacque Vaughn said to laughter.

Oh yes, Sixers fans cursed, they turned old No. 25 jerseys into art projects and the scorned mostly let the mercurial guard have it for their belief he turned his back on the franchise that made him the No. 1 pick in 2016.

“I can’t worry about everyone’s feelings,” Simmons said before Tuesday’s game.

Simmons played his first game in Philadelphia since a June 20, 2021 Game 7 loss to Atlanta in the Eastern Conference semifinals. He passed up a wide-open tying dunk late in the loss that triggered passive criticisms from coach Rivers and Joel Embiid that unraveled the relationship. Simmons also had back issues and later said mental health woes played a role in his trade demand in the summer of 2021 that led to a contentious few days in training camp. Simmons was sent home for good, filed a grievance after the Sixers said he breached his contract (it was later settled in a confidential agreement) and then shipped to Brooklyn in a trade for All-Star James Harden.

Embiid and Harden sat out with injuries, as did Tyrese Maxey, the genial guard that became in instant fan-favorite as Simmons replacement.

Simmons, who watched from the bench as he recovered from a back injury when the Nets played in Philly in March, told reporters at shootaround he had no hard feelings toward Embiid and other former teammates.

“We had a lot of highlights. We had lot of great times,” Simmons said. “I got a lot of love for Jo, too. Obviously, didn’t work out. That’s life. Not everything works out in your favor.”

Ask if he might seek out Embiid, Simmons cracked, “Yeah, we’re going to do our secret handshake.”

The trio of sidelined Sixers starters made the nationally televised game a bit anticlimactic.

Well, at least on the court. Philadelphia’s starting lineup of Tobias Harris, P.J Tucker, Montrezl Harrell, De’Anthony Melton and Shake Milton was not what most fans who listed lower-level tickets in the $900 range…

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