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The Ben Simmons' feud with the Philadelphia 76ers that started this off-season shows no signs of abating. The drama that has followed this unfortunate saga is at an all-time high as the inevitable media day approaches.
With no side willing to budge, the conclusion of this impasse remains uncertain. But with less than a month left until the regular season starts, insiders stand divided on whether commissioner Adam Silver will step in to set things straight.
The oft-criticized power held by NBA players in dictating transfers or demanding trades is at its peak in what has transpired in Philly. Simmons has one-upped the adamant Anthony Davis' demands that created chaos in the New Orleans camp until he was traded to the LA Lakers. Even a bull-headed Davis, unlike the Australian, never threatened his club with a no-show directive, though.
Will Adam Silver step in if Ben Simmons refuses to play for the Philadelphia 76ers if he isn't traded?
According to Marc Stein, many 'insiders' believe that Adam Silver could step in to 'push' Ben Simmons if the player refuses to end his self-imposed exile. But Stein isn't sold on it yet. In his substack article, he wrote:
"Yet there is likewise great curiosity about the NBA's potential reaction. Would Commissioner Adam Silver go beyond exerting mere backchannel pressure on Simmons to report and step in to sanction him if he doesn’t? Several league insiders think so, but I’m not so sure."
"While (it's) true that the NBA dreads the idea of training camp holdouts coming back into vogue, like we saw in the early 1990s before the advent of rookie-scale contracts, intervention from the league is not always instant when discipline can come from the team first. The onus will be on the Sixers first to impose fines or a suspension."
Stein has a point. The NBA and Adam Silver are more business-oriented than law enforcers. Their purpose is to keep the league as lively as possible. Therefore, as long as a team is capable of disciplining their players, the league office rarely steps in.
The Philadelphia 76ers are entitled to pay Ben Simmons 50% of his salary, and will be unable to fine the 25-year-old before the regular season begins. So even if the Australian proballer refuses to join the training camp, there isn't much the Sixers can do at the moment.
Simmons, the Fresh Prince, was supposed to be the LeBron James for the 76ers. He definitely had the potential, albeit with a bit of improvement at the shooting end.
The management loved him; fans loved him, and most of all, the NBA executives loved him. However, as destiny would have it, Simmons' scared-to-even-dunk 2021 playoffs performance changed not just the perception of his fan base but also his dynamic with the Philadelphia 76ers.
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