“They don’t want to see a guy making $40 million tell me his back hurt” Gilbert Arenas lashes out at Ben Simmons critics claiming it was necessary for the Nets star to ‘hold back’
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Gilbert Arenas and Ben Simmons
Now that the Brooklyn Nets are officially out of the playoff race, people are starting to break down the possible reasons why they were defeated. Most of us may have expected the series to last much longer to bring back Ben Simmons but as well know it, he was a no-show during their most crucial game. Nets players have stated many reasons that contributed to their 4-0 upset with some being lack of player availability, emotional stress, and just frustration.
Ben Simmons would have been a very important piece on the Nets’ defense after being acquired solely of his capabilities in that attribute of the game. Simmons was seemingly very healthy during the first two weeks of the playoffs and his return felt legitimate. Head Coach Steve Nash would also reveal that he had a lot of progressions and faced little to no setbacks during practice.
Ben Simmons pulls out of Game 4 after teasing his return for the playoffs
Over the last few months, Ben Simmons has been very vague to the media and team about his “mental health” situation. His actions suggested that he may have been afraid of the fans after having a horrible run in the playoffs last season. Simmons did not show up for practice while he was on the Philadelphia 76ers nor did he try in reciprocating to his peers and coaching staff.
The All-Star guard was given the green light to participate in Game 4 and then was listed as ruled out on Monday. The player was said to have experienced soreness in the back as he had just recovered from a herniated disc. His teammates, Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving would fail to lead the team past the Boston Celtics who went undefeated.
Gilbert Arenas believes Ben Simmons has other reasons for his absence
Ben Simmons would explain his situation saying that his back issues had something to do with his mental illness. Many associates of the league were left confused and frustrated over the way Simmons has been handling his problems lately. However, Gilbert Arenas had another perspective to share.
“I knew it wasn’t the mental thing when he showed up in Philly. If you’re scared of a crowd and you’re mentally scared of something, you try to avoid it, you try to avoid that situation. But the fact that he showed up, grabbing balls, throwing, hearing the boos, showed it wasn’t the crowd that scared him,” said Arenas. He also continued saying, “They don’t want to see a guy who’s making $40 million tell me his back hurt.”
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Rakibul John Rodgers
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