Ben Simmons Opens Up About The 76ers Holdout, His Shooting Struggles, The Hawks Series & More
The Old Man and The Three is BACK with an incredible interview with JJ’s old Philadelphia 76ers teammate and current Brooklyn Net, Ben Simmons. This is Ben’s first long-form interview in a couple of years so there’s a lot to get to. You won’t want to miss this one.
Topics include:
-What JJ and and Tommy have been up to since the break.
-The chemistry that Ben and JJ developed as teammates.
-Ben’s often overlooked skills on the defensive end and his passing.
-The shooting narrative surrounding Ben in The NBA.
-Falling in love with basketball at an early age.
-His time at LSU.
-Dealing with negativity from media and fans online.
-The story of someone taking video and heckling him in a candy store.
-His mental health struggles over the last few years.
-Why he held out on The Philadelphia 76ers.
-Doc Rivers kicking him out of practice.
-His last playoff series in Philadelphia against The Atlanta Hawks.
-A detailed explanation as to why he passed up the wide open dunk on Trae Young.
-What he’s looking forward to most about playing with Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and The Brooklyn Nets.
-And so much more.
Subscribe to The Old Man and The Three podcast w/ JJ Redick (ESPN / First Take) and Tommy Alter YouTube channel today for more NBA analysis and player interviews.
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Just wanted to pop by and say thanks for watching. This is one of the best conversations we’ve had on the pod and we’re thrilled to be able to share it with everyone. We’ve got some great guests coming on soon so be sure to subscribe to the channel if you haven’t already. Thanks again for watching.
This was the most open and relaxed I’ve ever seen Simmons and it’s great to see!!
@Dom Taylor passing is fundamental bro…one of the most important aspects of the game
And he’s great at it
Would have been even greater if you didn’t coddle Ben, you played the yes man to his feeling in this JJ. Lost some resepct for you….
i was def saying travel on that play.
@Dill Gerth JJ is not a therapist or a judge who has to get the answers. It’s a normal conversation between people who know each other. Players share as much as they are comfortable sharing
Can’t believe we’re finally gonna hear Simmons’ side of the story
@Smesh So people give you an answer to your question and you call them simps? If you’re that sensitive maybe comment sections aren’t for you …
@Smesh why do you care that deep about his accent
we’re finally hearing his side because people keep telling it for him.
@121 124 damn W clapback 😂
@121 124 he’s been playing in America since 2013, but who cares. I disagree with the guy you’re replying to lol
Thank you to all of you for shedding more light to this entire situation and bringing the attention that is DESERVED to the mental health discussion. You are truly changing things, it is incredible to see 🙏
STOP, it’s disrespectful to actual people who live with this illness
@pageperpage I have real mental health issues myself. In fact, I’m prescribed twice daily medication. I have interest put in place for myself with my employer to where if I need to miss work it’s understood and I’m taking care of. This guy clearly did this purely to recoup money for not doing his job – end of story.
Shed more light on what? JJ did not ask any critical questions….
🔥
New media
5:12 INTERVIEW STARTS
19:50 PLAYIN WIT BEN
22:55 NOT RESPONDING TO CRITICS
23:50 GOIN VIRAL FOR SHOOTIN 3’S IN VEGAS
25:00 SHOOTIN 3’S FOR NETS
25:30 PLAYIN IN PHILLY
27:00 THE PROCESS
29:00 RAPTORS SERIES
32:25 FALLIN IN LOVE W/ BASKETBALL
34:00 LSU/COLLEGE TALK
36:00 DRAFT NIGHT
37:40 ROOKIE YEAR
38:40 ’22 #1 PICK INJURY
39:40 ROOKIE YEAR BEEF W/ MITCHELL
41:50 BREAK FROM NBA
42:45 FITTING IN WITH NETS
44:55 BEING TRADED
45:40 LEAVING GROUP TEXT
46:25 BACK INJURY
51:55 BEING PRANKED AT CANDY STORE
53:55 KEEPING INJURIES SECRET
57:20 HAWKS SERIES / MENTAL HEALTH
1:00:30 SIXERS PRACTICE / FEUD
1:04:40 HAWKS SERIES NOT TAKIN DUNK/SHOT
1:06:00 LOOKING BACK
Shaq dunking in the comments
Da real MVP
💯
W
🐐
I’m so happy JJ did this interview. Asked the questions that we all wanted answered and, through that, showed the bias the media has had toward Ben for the past 2 years. Praying for a great season for Ben to prove the haters wrong
The bias? They were praising him up until HE gave up. Also hearing his side and then thinking the media is biased because of it shows YOUR bias
@lazyasiandude maybe but he is in the perfect system for his playing style.
@lazyasiandude Go away
Great he did this interview, but I mean, ben is going to be the same player, great in the regular season, then a pylon in the playoffs lol
This was incredible. He speaks well, he sounds like he’s in a good place, I’m excited for that first game.
This interview alone shows JJ’s ability to not only build long lasting relationships but also bring out the human side of these players. It’s so much easier to ask the difficult questions when theirs mutual respect.
It’s easy to be friendly when you don’t challenge people. Ben needs to be challenged and not babied. Hes a young man making more money than any of us will in our lifetime, but we should feel sorry for him?
@luis placchetta its not hate. jj didnt even ask the important questions about ben’s weaknesses in his game. letting stuff slide as usual.
Ben continues to push the blame on other people and not himself
No all he did was ask questions as a friend. He didn’t ask any hard questions. Pretty dumb interview imo.. nothing real all the same media bs
@luis placchetta calling someone out is hating? No wonder you young dudes be soft af looking up to Ben simmons lol
This gane against Cleveland in 2018 Simmons had 27, 15 and 13, on 70% FG%. Monster game. Not to mention his defense. He is underrated.
I think he’s appropriately rated. He’s consistently an above average player. He’s not a superstar or star level player that can carry team, but he’s a good player that’s most effective when he’s not regularly the primary or even secondary player on offense. I’m not a fan of his after I realized he wouldn’t ever live up to his expectations, but I do know what he does well, and I agree the Nets are the perfect fit for him.
Nah he’s not underrated, this is what we KNOW Ben can do regularily……
He was….and is compared to Lebron
are u crazy
is that the game bron dropped 40? my boss took us to that game
That was also for seeding rights against lebron. He had a crazy run those last like 15 games
That was wonderful JJ. Happy to see Ben smile after all this time. This goes way beyond basketball. I’m a hardcore philly fan (from France), so I hope the nets aren’t too good this year. But seeing you guys talk so openly and with trust was a wonderful experience that made my day. Ben, you’re a hell of an athlete, you have all the talent and the skills to be a perenial all-star. All the best to you in your future. And bravo to JJ for an honest interview with difficult questions that many would have been afraid to ask. 10/10
That Philly team was so stacked. Really wanted to see them run it back.
Philly was the more talented team on paper. Ben should have locked up Trae on defense. They had 3 losses decided by fewer than 5 points. If ben was at least 15 ppg scorer and 60 pct free throw shooter they could have beat the shorthanded bucks.
Trust me…Philly didn’t want him back…all of Philly, fans, coaches, teammates…
Such a fact! I’m still upset about it lol
Leonard hitting that outrageous shot will haunt Philly forever