Stephen A. Smith Rips ‘Pathetic’ Ben Simmons For Expected Game 4 Absence

Ben Simmons caught the attention of the NBA world Sunday evening for all the wrong reasons.

Simmons, who reportedly was set to make his Nets debut on Monday as Brooklyn welcomes the Boston Celtics for Game 4, no longer is expected to play. Both ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski and The Athletic’s Shams Charania reported that Simmons will remain on the sidelines in what now is a win-or-go-home contest for the Nets.

Given that Simmons was expected to play, it’s rubbed many the wrong way as some believe it shows a complete lack of desire. ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith took it a step further and torched Simmons during NBA on ESPN coverage immediately after the development.

“I feel bad for anybody who was his teammate,” Smith said. “He quit on LSU. He quit on the Philadelphia 76ers. And now he ain’t showing up for the Brooklyn Nets. We can point to all the excuses, all the rationale behind it that we want to. I do recall, despite him not playing, he still filed a grievance to collect $20 million that he has not earned. This is one of the most pathetic situations that I’ve ever seen in my life.

“He ain’t going into war. He ain’t going into the octagon. He’s not going in a boxing ring. It’s pulling teeth to get this man to play basketball. It’s pathetic. It’s sad,” Smith continued. “And at the end of the day when the NBA gets in the collective bargaining table and they go after the players in terms of a pay-for-play stipulation in the collective bargaining agreement, it’s going to be called the Ben Simmons rule.”

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Smith was not the only one who had that sort of reaction as NBA analyst Reggie Miller also tore into the former No. 1 overall pick.

The Celtics enter Game 4 with a 3-0 series lead while the Nets are on the brink of elimination. Monday’s contest is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET.