Ben Simmons spoke candidly about his experience with the Philadelphia 76ers during a podcast appearance with JJ Redick.
"I was in such a bad place where I was like, f---, I'm trying to get here and you guys are, like, throwing all these other things at me to where you're not helping. And that's all I wanted, was help," Simmons said.
"I didn't feel like I got it from coaches, teammates -- I won't say all teammates, because there's great guys on that team that did reach out and are still my friends -- but I didn't feel like I got that, and it was just a tough place for me."
Simmons was kicked out of practice by Doc Rivers for being a "distraction" after Simmons declined several times to sub in for a drill. He ultimately was suspended for conduct detrimental to the team.
"I actually spoke to Doc before practice. I was like, 'Doc, I'm not ready. Mentally, I'm not ready. Please just understand that,'" Simmons said on the podcast. "I tried to let him know prior, and he was like, 'Well, I'm going to put you in anyway.' I'm like, 'All right.' He told me to get in. I looked at him. It was like one minute into practice, like, 'Ben, get in.'
"I'm like, first of all, no one's doing that. You're doing this on purpose. And that's how I felt, too. It seems like everyone's trying to f--- with me now. I'm getting fined for not lifting weights, but physically I'm one of the strongest guys on the f---ing team. So now they're fining me for little things. It was just a buildup. Obviously, I didn't handle things the right way, but, also, the team didn't either, and the people who had that power."