By Jerry Wein
The Sixers Daryl Morey has been working for the past four months to trade crybaby Ben Simmons.
With no luck, and that’s because GM’s all over the NBA watched Simmons world-class meltdown in the playoffs last June when he didn’t take a shot in the fourth quarters against Hawks.
And then there the non-dunk heard around the world.
The Nets have taken calls from NBA teams interested in trading for Kyrie Irving, according to a report by ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
On NBA Countdown, Wojnarowski explained that general managers Sean Marks and Morey had not — yet, at least — spoken about a deal involving Irving and Simmons.
“Here’s what’s interesting — that the Sixers play the Nets tonight, obviously, who are without Kyrie Irving,” Wojnarowski said. “Daryl Morey has called all over the league, talking to teams about star players everywhere, trying to find a deal for Ben Simmons. One team he has not called, I’m told, that’s the Brooklyn Nets. He has not lobbed a call to Sean Marks, their GM, about Kyrie Irving.
“Brooklyn, I’m told, has taken incoming calls from teams on Kyrie Irving. But they have not, themselves, made any calls about Irving. So Brooklyn and Philadelphia, with these two players in limbo, they have not talked to each other about a Simmons-for-Kyrie-Irving trade.”
Brooklyn decided Oct. 12 that Irving would not practice or play in 2021-22 unless he fulfills his New York City vaccination requirements. Marks and Nets owner Joe Tsai came to an agreement on the matter.
Irving broke his silence Oct. 13 when he took to Instagram Live and explained the stance against the city’s mandate. Head coach Steve Nash and superstar forward Kevin Durant were chief among Nets to subsequently address Irving’s absence.
Simmons, on the other hand, has been floated as a potential solution if Brooklyn’s situation with Irving lingers. However, Simmons has created a situation of his own with the 76ers that bled from this past offseason — he is reportedly “not ready to mentally play” and missed Friday’s game.
