Sixers consider their latest meeting against Ben Simmons just another game: ‘For us, that’s over’

At this point, the 76ers are beyond tired of answering questions about facing Ben Simmons. At least it felt that way Tuesday on the eve of Simmons’ second visit to the Wells Fargo Center to play against his former teammates.

Sixers coach Doc Rivers was asked how much fun it will be for Joel Embiid, if he’s available with left foot soreness, to face Simmons in the contest against the Brooklyn Nets. Embiid missed the Sixers’ 115-108 home victory over the Nets on Nov. 22.

“Honestly, for us, that’s over,” Rivers said. “We don’t care. We’re playing the Nets. Honestly, I don’t have one guy that brought it up today.

“I think, for us, the Nets are one of the top four teams in the East, and we’re trying to beat the Nets. All that other stuff is for everybody else.”

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Rivers has good reason to downplay the Sixers’ second matchup against Simmons. This is a huge game even without that story line.

The Sixers (30-16) are in second place in the Eastern Conference and riding a league-best five-game winning streak. The fourth-place Nets (29-17) are a game back and have appeared to turn things around even with Kevin Durant being sidelined with a sprained knee ligament. They won their last two games after losing four straight.

But a lot of time will have to pass before Simmons playing against his former teammates is no longer a big deal in Philly.

Simmons asked for a trade and refused to report to Sixers training camp last season. Even after Simmons arrived at the end of the preseason, he still did not play for the team. Simmons cited his mental health as the reason for his limited participation in team activities.

The Sixers, in turn, withheld his pay before he was traded to Brooklyn in February, 2022. But in August, Simmons and the Sixers reached a settlement on the grievance he filed to recoup a portion of the $20 million withheld for his failure to play in games. Simmons’ departure made him one of the most hated sports figures in Philly history.

As for players who remain with the Sixers, Shake Milton says, personally, Wednesday’s matchup will just be another game.

“Obviously for the city, it means a little more,” he said. “I know they’re going to come with a lot of energy, so it’s going to be exciting. And it’s going to be a fun game. So I’m going to look forward to it.”

Simmons is averaging career lows in points (7.5), rebounds (6.7), and assists (6.4) in Brooklyn. The three-time All-Star is also shooting a career-worst 43.4% from the foul line.

Meanwhile, Embiid is the league’s leading scorer at 33.6 points along with 9.8 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.0 steal, and 1.7 blocks.

The Sixers once hoped the duo would form an all-time great pairing. However, they were more like the NBA’s version of oil and water in their time together.

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There were some signs of a potential rift. Sources close to Simmons felt he played better when Embiid didn’t play. Some comments Embiid made during Simmons’ holdout last season were perceived as shots at his former co-star. And when talking about Simmons recently, Embiid wouldn’t even mention his name.

For all those reasons, there’s still a lot of interest in seeing Simmons defend Embiid, a five-time All-Star, on a switch.

“I mean, we like that matchup,” Milton said. “We are going to throw him the ball and let him go to work for sure. I mean, we like Joel against anybody so it really doesn’t matter.

“But honestly, there’s a lot of hype around the matchup and the teams and everything that’s going on. But for us, it’s going to be about getting another win, honestly.”