Should a Three-Time All-Star Consider Retirement?
With just over a month remaining before the tip-off of the NBA season, one of the most notable free agents still on the market is three-time All-Star Ben Simmons. After being bought out by the Brooklyn Nets in February, Simmons was picked up by the Clippers for the remainder of the season. While it was reported in July that Simmons was drawing interest from the Boston Celtics, the Phoenix Suns, and the Sacramento Kings, nothing has since materialized, and now the New York Post’s Stefan Bondy is reporting that Simmons is considering retirement. So, this leads one to ask, should Ben Simmons retire?
The answer is yes, yes, and yes. The truth of the matter is, when a player starts mulling retirement, they’re already gone mentally. When a player is brought on to an NBA team, or if a player is still on an NBA team, they are there to commit to the process. They are there to work with the coaches, work with the players, and try to compete at the highest level to help their team reach the goals and aspirations they desire. If a player is mulling retirement, that means they are already not 100% committed to the process right off the bat, and if you’re an NBA team, why would you consider bringing on someone who may have just been contemplating quitting the league? Seems like a bad recipe to me. Besides his already divided mentality, though, Ben Simmons has essentially been an empty roster spot for some years now.
Ever since his passing up an open dunk at the end of the 76ers' game seven bout against the Hawks in the 2021 Eastern Conference Semifinals, Ben Simmons hasn’t been the same player. Before this incident, in his first three years in the league, Ben Simmons averaged 15.9 points a game, 7.9 rebounds, and 7.5 assists. Since this incident, though, Ben Simmons has averaged less than six points, rebounds, and assists each, with his most recent being his worst, averaging just three points, four rebounds, and three assists. This is a stark contrast from his first few years, with the former All-Star seemingly getting worse every year, but it’s not just a drop in statistics. Ben Simmons was actively avoiding shooting the ball to the point where he passed up open layups. In the last three seasons, he has barely played more than 30 games due to “back injuries”, and, arguably, the most infuriating, he tends to wear flashy and flamboyant clothes on the sideline when he’s injured. All these features come across as someone who, one, is afraid to shoot at the risk of being fouled and missing his free throws, and two, someone who doesn't mind missing the time, possibly given that he’s already made hundreds of millions of dollars.
If I’m an NBA team, why bother with someone who doesn’t produce and doesn’t seem to want to play, and if I’m Ben Simmons, why keep putting yourself through this again? You barely produce now for your teams, and you can’t even play a third of a season anymore due to “injuries”. For the league’s sake, the fans’ sake, and for Ben Simmons’ sake, he should just retire. Hopefully, he’ll make the right decision.
