Philadelphia 76ers: Reggie Miller takes a huge shot at Ben Simmons

Joel Embiid has played his last six quarters of basketball – seven if you count the Philadelphia 76ers‘ Game 3 overtime period – with a torn ligament in his right thumb. Over that period of time, Embiid has scored 48 points, hit 12-16 free throws, and even pulled down 15 boards, which can’t be easy for a righthand dominant player wearing a finger sling.

Despite reportedly needing surgery to correct the tear, Embiid has vowed to soldier on, according to Adrian Wojnarowski, and will continue to play 40-ish minutes per game until his team is either eliminated or he’s riding on a parade float down Broad Street with the Larry O’Brien Championship Trophy in one hand, his son Arthur in the other, and a DX-themed Title Belt around his waist Vinny Curry-style.

And as for Ben Simmons, Embiid’s former running mate who sat out the first half of the season in a push for a trade and then suffered a back injury almost immediately after arriving in Brooklyn? Well, after targeting Game 4 of the Brooklyn Nets’ series against the Boston Celtics as his return date for some time now, the former first overall pick has opted to sit the contest out and effectively iced out his season in the leadup to an elimination game.

Unfortunate? For BKN fans, you bet; while the chances of pulling out the series upset over Boston, let alone a single win, appears to be a longshot, watching a player who does everything the Nets need right now chill out on the bench in some, um, creative outfits has to sting. I mean goodness, you know it’s bad when Wendy’s spokesman/all-time NBA legend Reggie Miller takes to Twitter to absolutely body the former Philadelphia 76ers point guard in a way that is both as surprising as it is apt.

Reggie Miller doesn’t hold back on the Philadelphia 76ers draftee.

Alright, so without further ado, I present to you: The tweet.

https://twitter.com/ReggieMillerTNT/status/1518332036179632130?s=20&t=WD2mGfKhggHZdpGpnOlB3A

Help, help, he needs some milk!

Now, if we’re being honest, did the player one spot behind James Harden on the all-time 3 point shooting list actually say anything untrue? That depends; while we can’t actually quantify a player’s competitive fire – I mean, have you watched any SimmoTheSavage25 on Twitch? – the Nets do still have a small chance to make the playoffs and do still have KD and Kyrie Irving. Even if the chances of pulling out a W are relatively low – 34.7 percent according to ESPN – inserting a multiple-time All-Star with All-Defense pedigree certainly wouldn’t hurt their case, especially if he’s slotted into the Bruce Brown role for limited minutes.

If Simmons really can’t go because of his back, that’s one thing, as such an injury could make it hard just to get out of bed, let alone all of the activities needed to play basketball at the highest level imaginable, but it sure sounds like the Nets aren’t stoked on losing their third-best player in their most crucial game of the season, as Woj alluded to on ESPN.

I guess Jalen Rose was right roughly three weeks ago when he called Brooklyn trading James Harden to Philadelphia for Ben Simmons a massive mistake.

Who knows, maybe this will all be for not. Maybe the Brooklyn Nets will pull out the W against the Celtics on their home court, and Ben Simmons will be ready to hit the trenches come Game 5 in Boston. Or maybe the “Fresh Prince” will ultimately close out the 2021-22 NBA season without a game played but will be ready to go this fall and prove to be the missing piece alongside KD and Kyrie to form a basketball dynasty the likes of which New York hasn’t seen since the Knicks were actually good? But either way, as everyone from Reggie Miller to Kendrick Perkins, and Stephen A Smith shower the LSU product with criticism, it’s comforting to know the Philadelphia 76ers won’t have to deal with BS anytime soon.