The 2023-24 NBA season looked like a promising one for the Philadelphia 76ers, but an injury to reigning MVP Joel Embiid derailed their plans.
Embiid suffered a meniscus tear in his knee that required surgical repair and will be out for an extended period of time, leaving the 76ers to fend for themselves in his absence.
It’s been a rough few years for the franchise as they’ve been close to advancing to the Eastern Conference Finals just to fall short every time.
Former head coach Doc Rivers, who now leads the Milwaukee Bucks, was on the losing end of several heartbreaking playoff series.
However, the worst one was the Game 7 loss at home to the Atlanta Hawks in the 2021 NBA Playoffs where Ben Simmons infamously passed up an open layup on a fastbreak.
Rivers reflected on that time and admitted he made a mistake for how he handled the Simmons situation via Jamal Collier of ESPN.
“I don’t know if the whole Ben thing was going to happen regardless, but I didn’t like me being a part of that,” Rivers said.
When Doc Rivers reflected on his tenure in Philadelphia, his mind went back to the end of his first season and the way he handled Ben Simmons
"I don't know if the whole Ben thing was going to happen regardless, but I didn't like me being a part of that": https://t.co/4W6BDxGrdg
— Jamal Collier (@JamalCollier) February 25, 2024
Rivers is referring to his press conference after the game where he said he wasn’t sure if Simmons could be the starting point guard on a championship team.
The comments made waves on social media as they served as an indictment of Simmons’ future in Philadelphia.
The former All-Star was shipped off to the Brooklyn Nets in exchange for James Harden, though that experiment didn’t work either.
Rivers would probably like to walk those comments back now, but the damage is done and he’ll need to be better the next time that sort of situation comes up.
NEXT: Doc Rivers Has Honest Admission About Playoff Failure With Joel Embiid