Simmons appears set to rejoin 76ers after surprise return to Philadelphia

The
embattled
All-Star
showed
up
at
Wells
Fargo
Center
shortly
before
tip-off
of
a
preseason
game
between
the
76ers
and
Brooklyn
Nets,
ESPN
reported,
adding
that
team
officials
were
not
aware
he
was
en
route.

The
report
said
Simmons
took
a
COVID-19
test
in
the
arena,
the
first
step
in
following
NBA
protocols
that
will
allow
him
to
rejoin
the
team
after
missing
all
of
training
camp
and
the
preseason.

Earlier
Monday,
ESPN
and
The
Athletic
said
Simmons’ representatives
had
been
engaged
in
talks
with
76ers
management
for
the
past
few
days
and
made
progress
in
ending
the
Australian’s
holdout.

Simmons
demanded
a
trade
away
from
Philadelphia
following
a
disappointing
Eastern
Conference
semi-finals
loss
to
the
Atlanta
Hawks
and
had
not
spoken
directly
to
team
officials
since
late
August.

Head
coach
Doc
Rivers
spoke
to
reporters
before
Monday’s
game
and
said
the
team
has
always
wanted
Simmons
to
return.

“Listen,
we’ve
said
from
day
one
what
we
wanted.
We’d
love
to
get
him
back,”
Rivers
said.
“Other
than
that,
honestly,
there’s
nothing
to
report.
Our
position
hasn’t
changed
at
all.”

Not
long
after
that,
Simons
arrived
at
the
arena.

His
return
not
necessarily
mean
he
will
be
with
the
team
for
the
long
haul,
but
getting
the
guard
back
on
the
court
could
make
it
easier
for
Philadelphia
to
trade
him.

Simmons
is
due
to
be
paid
$33million
this
season
and
will
have
three
years
and
$114m
remaining
on
his
deal
after
that.

Those
numbers
combined
with
Simmons’ abysmal
showing
in
last
season’s
playoffs
have
left
Philadelphia
with
minimal
leverage
in
the
trade
market.

Across
Games
5,
6
and
7
against
the
Hawks,
Simmons
averaged
just
6.3
points
from
4.7
field
goal
attempts.

The
25-year-old
attempted
only
one
shot
in
the
fourth
quarter
of
the
final
six
games
of
the
series
against
the
Hawks,
while
he
passed
up
a
dunk
that
would
have
tied
the
game
in
the
fourth
quarter
of
Game
7.

His
34.2
per
cent
free-throw
shooting
throughout
the
playoffs
was
by
far
the
worst
rate
of
any
player
with
10
attempts
or
more,
while
he
took
just
one
shot
in
clutch
situations.

In
four
seasons
with
the
Sixers,
Simmons
has
averaged
15.9
points
per
game
in
the
regular
season,
yet
he
has
attempted
only
34
shots
from
three-point
range
and
made
just
59.7
per
cent
from
the
foul
line.

Depending
on
how
quickly
details
are
finalised
and
he
is
cleared
to
play,
the
earliest
Simmons
could
feature
in
a
game
would
be
Friday’s
preseason
finale
against
the
Detroit
Pistons.

The
76ers
open
the
regular
season
on
October
20
against
the
New
Orleans
Pelicans.