After a rocky departure from the 76ers, <a href="https://news.thesportsdrop.com/nba/anthony-davis-has-preference-for-different-position-at-lakers-despite-showing-willingness-to-play-center-20221014-SPD-2966.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Ben Simmons</a> is gearing up for a comeback season with the Nets. The forward was part of the arrangement that moved James Harden from the Nets to the Sixers in exchange for Harden, who was unhappy in Brooklyn.



In the four years between 2016 and 2022, Ben Simmons and <a href="https://news.thesportsdrop.com/nba/nba-news-james-harden-gets-real-on-the-importance-of-his-own-performances-for-sixers-20221012-SPD-2953.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Joel Embiid</a> played together for the 76ers, but it seems that their friendship never went beyond the court. Ugly circumstances surrounded the conclusion of the Embiid-Simmons period.



Speaking to ESPN for an interview, Simmons has now spoken out about the lack of chemistry between himself and Joel Embiid, the talented center for the Philadelphia 76ers. The new star of the Brooklyn Nets was candid when questioned about his relationship with Joel Embiid and whether or not the two had communicated since the deal that brought Simmons to Brooklyn.



<h2>What Ben Simmons said of relationship with Joel Embiid</h2>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote">“I don’t talk to Jo. We never really spoke. I don’t think there was really a relationship there. Like in terms of a friendship? You can try as hard as you want to try to be close to somebody, be their friend, whatever it is, but everyone is different as people, so for me, it’s never personal. “I don’t have any anger or hate towards him. He is who he is and I am who I am. And we’ve got our personal lives. And work is basketball, so in that moment, my goal is to win and I got to win with Jo. He’s a great player, we just didn’t get it done,” Simmons added.</blockquote>

"We never really spoke" - Ben Simmons opens up on relationship with ex-teammate Joel Embiid - thesportsdrops NEWS

"We never really spoke" – Ben Simmons opens up on relationship with ex-teammate Joel Embiid

miniaturas

When the 76ers traded for James Harden in the February deadline, it looked like they were finally ready to contend. Though the Beard got off to a promising start, his level eventually declined and he failed to perform when it mattered the most last season.



Philadelphia was out of the playoffs in the Eastern Conference semifinals, and much of the blame fell on Harden. Still, the team decided not to make significant changes this offseason, keeping the <a href="https://news.thesportsdrop.com/nba/no-relationship-between-lebron-james-and-kareem-abdul-jabbar-20221005-SPD-2922.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">All-Star</a> as well as head coach Doc Rivers.



Despite having the support from Daryl Morey and the Sixers‘ <a href="https://news.thesportsdrop.com/nba/rob-pelinka-signs-long-term-extension-with-lakers-through-2026-20221009-SPD-2940.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">front office</a>, Harden still has to prove many of his doubters wrong. He may have to post incredible numbers to appease them, but for him, the ultimate goal is to win a championship.



<h2>James Harden doesn’t care about the stats as long as Sixers win NBA championship</h2>



“Me averaging 20 points, averaging damn near a triple-double, us winning at a high rate, one or two seed, giving us a really good chance where we’re all playing really good basketball, or averaging 28 in the same kind of thing — it’s all the same,” James Harden told Joe Vardon of The Athletic. “Ultimately, it’s winning a championship. The numbers don’t really mean anything, individually.”

NBA News: James Harden gets real on the importance of his own performances for Sixers - thesportsdrops NEWS

NBA News: James Harden gets real on the importance of his own performances for Sixers

destacadas

Unconfirmed reports indicate that <a href="https://news.thesportsdrop.com/nba/nba-free-agency-james-harden-agrees-to-accept-15m-salary-cut-to-continue-at-76ers-2086-20220708-SPD-2086.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">James Harden</a> will take a significant pay reduction in order to help the <a href="https://news.thesportsdrop.com/nba/what-james-harden-needs-to-do-in-order-to-succeed-per-tracy-mcgrady-1672-20220620-SPD-1672.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Philadelphia 76ers</a> free up more salary cap room for the next 2022–23 NBA season. They have utilized that room to bring in Trevelin Queen, P.J. Tucker, and Danuel House, all of whom were Harden’s teammates in Houston. 



Harden’s sacrifice of household income made these deals feasible. In addition, other changes may still be in the works. 



. Moreover, the team was able to keep Harden while avoiding a lengthy commitment to an elderly star. Now the shooting guard discussed with Yahoo Sports his decision to sign a contract that benefits the team. 



<h2>What James Harden said about decision to take pay cut</h2>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote">“I had conversations with [Sixers president of basketball operations] Daryl [Morey], and it was explained how we could get better and what the market value was for certain players. I told Daryl to improve the roster, sign who we needed to sign and give me whatever is left over. This is how bad I want to win. I want to compete for a championship. That’s all that matters to me at this stage. I’m willing to take less to put us in position to accomplish that.”“I don’t really listen to what people are saying. I wasn’t right last season and I still almost averaged a triple-double. If anybody else had those numbers, we’d be talking about them getting the max. People were used to seeing me averaging 40, 30 points, and so they viewed it as a down year. I was in Philadelphia for a couple of months and I had to learn on the fly. That’s just what it was. I’m in a good space physically and mentally right now, and I’m just looking forward to next season.”<cite>James Harden told Yahoo Sports</cite></blockquote>

NBA News: James Harden took pay cut to help 76ers compete for a championship - thesportsdrops NEWS

NBA News: James Harden took pay cut to help 76ers compete for a championship

Though the expectations were through the roof in Philadelphia when the Sixers acquired <a href="https://news.thesportsdrop.com/nba/what-james-harden-needs-to-do-in-order-to-succeed-per-tracy-mcgrady-1672-20220620-SPD-1672.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">James Harden</a> in February, things didn’t go according to plan. For the second year in a row, the 76ers lost in the Conference Semifinals.



The team has to turn the page, however, and The Beard will have another chance to prove his haters wrong. There were doubts about his future following his poor ending to the season, but he’s not going anywhere.



Harden even <a href="https://news.thesportsdrop.com/nba/nba-free-agency-james-harden-agrees-to-accept-15m-salary-cut-to-continue-at-76ers-2086-20220708-SPD-2086.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">took a pay cut</a> to stay in Philly because he feels he can win there. This could be one of his last opportunities to secure the elusive ring, but he is optimistic that he and <a href="https://news.thesportsdrop.com/nba/nba-news-76ers-joel-embiid-perplexed-as-to-why-they-let-jimmy-butler-leave-after-defeat-to-heat-771-20220514-SPD-771.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Joel Embiid</a> can do it together.



<h2>James Harden believes he and Joel Embiid can win the ring</h2>



“I talk with Joel frequently and we have meetings about how we’re going to play and what we need to do to help our team win a championship,” Harden told Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports. 



“When you have two of the top players at their positions on the same team, that’s a great building block. We’re going to grow together and try to lead this team to the top. I believe we can do it together.”

James Harden confident he and Joel Embiid can lead the Sixers to an NBA title - thesportsdrops NEWS

James Harden confident he and Joel Embiid can lead the Sixers to an NBA title

According to a report that was published by Shams Charania of The Athletic, <a href="https://news.thesportsdrop.com/nba/nba-news-james-harden-poised-to-agree-shorter-term-contract-extension-with-76ers-1621-20220618-SPD-1621.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">James Harden</a> intends on signing a new deal with the <a href="https://news.thesportsdrop.com/nba/nba-rumors-free-agent-veteran-pj-tucker-set-to-join-76ers-1892-20220629-SPD-1892.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Philadelphia 76ers</a>. This new development would provide the organization with greater freedom to enhance the squad for the next season.



The shooting guard will take a $15 million salary reduction as a result of declining his player option for the 2022-2023 season, which was worth $47 million. It is anticipated that his new contract will be for a period of two years and will include a player option for the second year. 



Charania adds that the entire value of the transaction is estimated to be somewhere in the area of $66-68 million dollars, despite the fact that the specifics of the sale are not yet public. This compensation decrease is intended to provide Philadelphia with the freedom necessary to assemble a team that can compete for a title in the next season.



<h2>What Harden’s pay cut means for Sixers</h2>



After using their entire mid-level exception to sign P.J. Tucker and their bi-annual exception to sign Danuel House, the Philadelphia 76ers have now reached their salary ceiling for the season, which is set at about $157 million dollars. Derek Bodner of The Daily Six says that the 76ers should have around $2 million in wiggle space below that hard limit as a result of Harden’s new contract.



During the course of the discussions, Harden’s personal connections with important members of the Sixers organization played a significant role in developing trust between the two parties. Some of those people are said to be the president of basketball operations Daryl Morey and minority owner Michael Rubin.

NBA Free Agency: James Harden agrees to accept $15m salary cut to continue at 76ers - thesportsdrops NEWS

NBA Free Agency: James Harden agrees to accept $15m salary cut to continue at 76ers

The <a href="https://news.thesportsdrop.com/nba/nba-playoffs-format-how-does-the-nba-postseason-work-126-20220502-SPD-126.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Philadelphia 76ers</a> have been swept once and knocked out twice in the postseason series since <a href="https://news.thesportsdrop.com/nba/2022-nba-playoffs-jimmy-butler-still-believes-in-heat-despite-sixers-wins-591-20220509-SPD-591.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Jimmy Butler</a> joined the <a href="https://news.thesportsdrop.com/nba/not-even-lebron-james-could-do-it-jonathan-kuminga-becomes-nbas-youngest-player-ever-to-start-in-playoffs-559-20220508-SPD-559.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Miami Heat</a> three years ago.



The Heat have made it to their second Eastern Conference finals appearance in three years after defeating the Philadelphia 76ers. On the other hand, the 2020 NBA Finals saw them make it to the finals.



Butler left the Sixers for greater and better things, yet the team has stayed stagnant, even after many roster changes.



<h2>Joel Embiid confused why Sixers let Jimmy Butler go</h2>



To make matters worse, Butler’s heroics in the game must have felt like icing on the cake for the Sixers. Because of his outstanding performance, <a href="https://news.thesportsdrop.com/nba/2021-22-nba-mvp-award-nikola-jokic-edges-out-giannis-antetokounmpo-and-joel-embiid-736-20220513-SPD-736.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Joel Embiid</a> expressed his regret at not having Butler as a teammate after the Heat won the series-clinching game on Thursday evening.



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote">“I’m happy for him. I won’t sit here and say I didn’t wish he was my teammate. I still don’t know how we let him go. But I wish I could have gone to battle with him still. But it is what it is. Just got to keep building and keep trying to reach that goal.Obviously, that’s my guy, that’s my brother. I mean, it’s tough. But I’m so proud of him. He’s playing at an unreal level right now. He’s something else right now. And I’m proud of him for being at this level and carrying them and what he’s been able to do.”<cite>Embiid said of Butler after the game</cite></blockquote>

Philadelphia 76ers

"We never really spoke" – Ben Simmons opens up on relationship with ex-teammate Joel Embiid

NBA News: James Harden gets real on the importance of his own performances for Sixers

NBA News: James Harden took pay cut to help 76ers compete for a championship

James Harden confident he and Joel Embiid can lead the Sixers to an NBA title

NBA Free Agency: James Harden agrees to accept $15m salary cut to continue at 76ers

NBA News: 76ers' Joel Embiid perplexed as to why they let Jimmy Butler leave after defeat to Heat

Receive the latest news in your E-mail box