Despite their LSU ties, Shaquille O’Neal hasn’t minced his words when it comes to Ben Simmons’ situation. The Los Angeles Lakers legend has been as ruthless as he usually is and that doesn’t always sit well with NBA stars.
Simmons’ decision not to play for the Philadelphia 76ers anymore even if that costs him his entire paycheck has raised contrasting takes around the league. But for the most part, people think he’s just bailing on his team.
A couple of weeks ago, Shaq lauded Joel Embiid’s MVP-caliber play and gave him props for shutting down the criticism with his play. Also, he took a big shot at Simmons for doing the exact opposite.
NBA News: Shaq Calls Ben Simmons A Crybaby
“The difference between him (Joel Embiid)and his soft partner (Ben Simmons), is he can take criticism without being a crybaby, and he still wants to play,”Shaq said. “‘Cause me and Charles, we’ve been on him. We stay on him. We tell him to his face what he needs to do.”
“He didn’t cry, he didn’t say “I want to be traded”, he didn’t complain about mistreatment. That’s the difference,” Shaq added.“The other guy I don’t respect... You’re missing a whole season because they asked your coach a question “Can we win without you” and your coach gave a funny answer. That should tell you, you need to get in the summertime and work on your game… Great players get criticized. Great players also step up to the criticism… I would get rid of him.”
Shaq Says Simmons Got Into It With Him Via DM
Unsurprisingly, Simmons didn’t care for Shaq’s comments and tried to give him a piece of his mind on social media. Shaq, truth to nature, didn’t shy away from the confrontation and just fired back:
“He’s acting like a baby. He kind of got in my DM and said some things and I said some things back,” Shaq told Sports Illustrated. “I can’t [reveal what he said]. I can’t do that. All I said is ‘You’re leaving your man out there and you need to play.’ That’s all I said. Then he said some things but I’m not going to elaborate on what he said because that’s not cool. He’s probably mad. He’s mad because I’m his LSU brother, and I am. I’m still his brother.”
At the end of the day, one can only hope that Simmons finds peace and eventually comes back to play, whether it’s for the Sixers or somewhere else. But hey, dealing with criticism is also a part of the job.