Is Ben Simmons the greatest thief of all time?

April 25, 2022 11:00AM CDT

Brooklyn Nets’ Ben Simmons, center, sits on the bench during the second half of Game 3 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series against the Boston Celtics, Saturday, April 23, 2022, in New York. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)

We all remember the great Movies of the past where the Outlaws robbed banks, or movies like Oceans 11 where a group of guys knocked off a Las Vegas casino. Fun to watch, because it’s all make believe.Today, we don’t have to go to the theater to watch the latest heist, we just have to tune into the NBA.

Brooklyn Nets guard Ben Simmons is pulling off the greatest heist of all time. The last game Simmons played was June 20th of 202, a playoff game the Sixers dropped to the Atlanta Hawks and you could argue he didn’t play much that game because his stats were less than spectacular. He demanded to be traded from the Sixers, a deal that took some time, but finally happened late this season. Simmons and his five year, 177 million dollar contract were dealt to Brooklyn.

I think we can all agree, Simmons is a good defensive player, but he struggles offensively, still the Nets were happy to add his defensive prowess to the roster. The only trouble is, he hasn’t played one minute in a Brooklyn uniform. Simmons says he has back issues, despite not playing competitive ball for almost a year. Nets head coach Steve Nash put the ball in Simmon’s court last week when he said it has to be up to Ben to decide when he is ready to play.

The Nets believed that time would be tonight in game four of the Nets series with the Boston Celtics, a series the Beantowners lead 3-0. But all of a sudden, after a practice session, Simmons tells the Nets his back is tight and he can’t play.

To date, I figure Simmons has stolen some 45 million dollars from the Sixers and the Newts over the past year. It seems very similar to the Kawhi Leonard situation with the Spurs his final season here in San Antonio.

It seems frustrating to NBA fans, but players continue to get away with it. So I guess all we can do is get our popcorn ready and Enjoy the show.