2020 NBA Playoffs: Ben Simmons sends heartfelt message after Sixers’ Round 1 sweep
The Sixers’ 2019-20 season ended rather unceremoniously on Sunday afternoon, completing a four-game sweep at the hands of the Boston Celtics. It was the culmination of bad front office decisions, aimless coaching, and a generally cursed season.
But the Sixers likely would’ve played a far more competitive series with their All-Star playmaker Ben Simmons in the lineup.
Simmons missed the entire series with a knee injury, and was forced to watch from afar after leaving the NBA’s Bubble in Orlando for a procedure.
For someone as hyper-competitive as Simmons is, it was probably torturous to watch the entire series and feel so helpless, especially after spending the last two postseasons battling with his team.
On Monday morning, Simmons let his guard down on social media and sent a message that seems to come straight from the heart:
?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 24, 2020Watching my team get swept hurt, and I don’t ever want to feel that way again.
— Ben Simmons (@BenSimmons25)
Watching my team get swept hurt, and I don’t ever want to feel that way again.
— Ben Simmons (@BenSimmons25) August 24, 2020
In the age of boring, handler-run Twitter accounts, it’s really cool to see Simmons use his as a way to communicate directly with his fans, and Sixers fans.
It’s also probably exciting for fans to hear Simmons sound simultaneously sad and motivated. This year was rough on all fronts, but if this brutal ending is enough to push Simmons to another level by next season, perhaps it’ll all be worth it.
The team as a whole needs to be better, and he also needs to be a better, more complete player if the Sixers want to return to being seen as an Eastern Conference contender in 2020-21.
The good news: it sounds, from this tweet, like the 24-year-old Simmons wants to lead his team on a deep run next year. Perhaps next year things will be different.
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