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Matt Slocum/Associated Press
For the past two months, rumors have continuously swirled about Ben Simmons. And yet, with less than three weeks to go until the start of the 2021-22 NBA season, there’s still a ton of uncertainty regarding Simmons’ status with the Philadelphia 76ers.
Will Simmons get traded? Will he ever show up to training camp if he’s not dealt? Has the 25-year-old All-Star point guard played his final game for Philadelphia? When and where will be the next time he takes the court for a game?
They’re all viable questions that still don’t have answers. They’ll come at some point, but it’s unclear when that will be.
For now, here’s some of the latest buzz surrounding Simmons and the rest of the NBA with training camps underway around the league.
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Chris Szagola/Associated Press
Simmons has already missed the start of 76ers training camp. According to a report from Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer, Simmons isn’t worried about missing out on the money or getting fined by the team for missing practices and games.
On Tuesday, ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne appeared on The Jump and shared a report that seems to back that claim. Because it doesn’t appear like Simmons is getting any closer to changing his mind and showing up for Philadelphia.
“Ben Simmons is willing to sit as long as it takes, too,” Shelburne said. “When you talk to people close to Ben, and I say, ‘Worse-case scenario it takes all year, would he sit all year?’ And the answer right now is, ‘Yes.'”
That doesn’t mean the 76ers aren’t still trying to move Simmons, though. According to ESPN’s Zach Lowe, the San Antonio Spurs have had discussions with Philadelphia, but “talks have not gotten far.” It’s unknown how many other teams are still potential suitors and where talks stand with anybody else.
So, for now, it’s more of a holding pattern to see what will be in Simmons’ future.
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Eric Gay/Associated Press
Thaddeus Young has yet to play his first game with the Spurs. Despite that, it already seems like the 33-year-old forward could be used as a potential trade chip for San Antonio at some point down the line.
Lowe reported that Young is an “obvious trade candidate” for the Spurs and that several contending teams have already inquired about him. Young has shown in recent years that he can still be a productive player, even as he heads into his 15th NBA season.
Young was moved to San Antonio in the sign-and-trade deal that sent DeMar DeRozan to the Chicago Bulls. Young spent the past two seasons in Chicago, mostly serving in a valuable bench role for the team. Last season, he averaged 12.1 points, 6.2 rebounds and 4.3 assists in 68 games (23 starts).
The Spurs have missed the playoffs each of the past two seasons, and they may not be in position to get back there in 2021-22. If that looks to be the case, San Antonio could benefit from trading Young while he has high value and getting some younger players or draft capital in return.
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Eric Gay/Associated Press
Since becoming head coach of the Spurs in 1996, Gregg Popovich has done it all. He’s a five-time NBA champion, a three-time NBA Coach of the Year and enters the 2021-22 season with 1,310 career regular-season wins, only 25 shy of Don Nelson for the most all time.
But at some point, the 72-year-old Popovich is going to hang it up. Could that be after the upcoming season?
Perhaps not. According to Lowe, there are people who believe that Popovich may be sticking around for a while longer.
“No one is sure if Popovich will coach beyond this season, but several sources who know him cautioned in recent weeks that it would not surprise them if he returned for 2022-23,” Lowe wrote.
Although the Spurs have had success for most of Popovich’s tenure, they’ve had losing records each of the past two seasons. Maybe he’s trying to get them back on track and experience a last bit of success before finally retiring.
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