It is finally happening.
After a dramatic offseason, the Brooklyn Nets are back on the court and the NBA world will get its first look at the trio of Ben Simmons, Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving.
Simmons will be making his Nets debut on Tuesday in Brooklyn’s preseason game against his former team, the Philadelphia 76ers.
Fortunately for Simmons the game will be played at Barclays Center in New York, meaning he will not have to worry too much about the hostile reception he would receive from the Philadelphia faithful.
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‘Don’t need him to shoot it’ Nash on Ben | 01:10
He will also not have to worry about defending former teammate Joel Embiid or fellow Sixers superstar James Harden, with both sitting out Tuesday’s game.
The Nets will be starting with Simmons, Durant, Irving, Joe Harris and Nic Claxton while the Sixers will open with Tyrese Maxey, De’Anthony Melton, Australian Matisse Thybulle, Tobias Harris and Paul Reed.
When asked about the match-up with Simmons, Sixers coach Doc Rivers said the team is “focused on the guys who want to be a Philadelphia 76er”.
“We’re not going to focus on anyone who doesn’t want to be one,” he added.
It comes after Simmons opened up on ‘The Old Man and the Three’ podcast about his exit from Philadelphia and claimed to have not been adequately supported by the Sixers organization.
“I was in such a bad place where I was like, f***, I’m trying to get here and you guys are, like, throwing all these other things at me to where you’re not helping,” Simmons told Redick. “And that’s all I wanted was help.
“I didn’t feel like I got it from coaches, teammates — I won’t say all teammates, because there’s great guys on that team that did reach out and are still my friends — but I didn’t feel like I got that , and it was just a tough place for me.”
Simmons laughs off leaving group chat 00:37
Meanwhile, at Brooklyn’s recent media day, Simmons said he was excited to get back on the floor with his new teammates and will get his first chance to do so on Tuesday.
“I’ve been working on myself this past year to get back on the floor and play at a high level,” Simmons said.
“I deserve to take this opportunity by the horns and get back on the floor. I’m excited to team up with these guys and coaches and I’m looking forward to it.”
New teammate Irving was full of praise for the Australian, declaring he “does not shy away from the moment”.
“It’s not too often that you get a chance to see a 6ft 10″ guy do the things he does,” Irving said.
“We can talk about the intangibles, we can talk about all the strengths, but what I’ve been able to observe from before as a competitor for the past few years but now as a teammate, is his resolve and his resiliency.
“He wants it, whatever greatness looks like to him, he wants it. When you’re around other great people and you’re in a great environment where you can be supported when you’re going through your ups and downs, I think that can help ease the journey.
“That’s ultimately what I would like to play within this position and this role on our team, is being a level of guidance for him and being able to protect him when needed but knowing he’s a big boy, he can handle it.”
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