Not to go all Charles Dickens up in here, but it’s been a tale of two cities over the last nine days in Philadelphia. The buzz around James Harden’s first home game felt akin to Terrell Owens’ Week 1 performance back in 2004 with the Eagles. Those are two Hall of Famers who went out of their way to choose Philadelphia and were treated as messianic figures.
Then there’s Ben Simmons.
I had wild expectations about what reaction the crowd would give Simmons as he was sitting on the Nets’ bench Thursday night. Fans were paying exorbitant prices for tickets to see Simmons’ supposed downfall.
Upon entering the Wells Fargo Center about an hour before tipoff, the stands were only about 15 percent full. That did not stop thunderous boos raining down upon Simmons and the Nets every single time he touched the ball during warmups. Simmons standing underneath the rim passing basketballs to his teammates felt entirely too on the nose, as if this was an Adam McKay production where the fourth wall was constantly being broken.
It was less than two minutes into the first quarter when the first “F*** Ben Simmons” chant broke out. With less than seven minutes remaining in the first and with the game in a TV timeout, that refrain was repeated throughout the arena. Joel Embiid at the free throw line late in the first quarter? Alternating “M-V-P” and FBS chants.
The issue for Sixers fans and their thought that the game would be sweet revenge? Their team came out and laid a complete stinker.
Harden seemingly shot 0-1,000. It felt like Seth Curry, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant were shooting 200 percent from the field. The Nets pulled off a win that was never in doubt 129-100. To say that Sixers should be at least a tad embarrassed for this nationally televised disaster would be an understatement.
One of the most-hyped crowds in Philly sports history was relegated to scrolling on their phones during the game because of how thoroughly the Nets were thrashing their favorite team. It’s hard to blame them for doing so. The fans brought the requisite fire, but the Sixers dumped cold water on it with each successive missed shot and nauseating defensive blunder.
Simmons, sporting a Louis Vuitton hockey jersey and a boxing kangaroo chain, stood up during those FBS chants, not shying away from the limelight, especially as Brooklyn took control in every aspect of the game. He was animated as he cheered on his new squad, a totally different vibe than the rather stoic energy he had during his Sixers tenure. The first person running on the court to dap up teammates after a timeout. Jumping up and shouting for his teammates. It was everything that Simmons needed the evening to be while the Sixers lived out a worst-case scenario.
With just seconds remaining in the first half, the emphatic Sixers fans had burned out. Audible “Broooooklynnnn” chants were happening from a contingent of Nets fans behind the team’s bench.
Simmons returned to court after halftime to another round of heavy boos, but with the Nets having a 19-point lead, the night was playing out as well as possible for the former Sixer.
If someone had wandered into the arena in the second half, they might not have even known Philly sports public enemy no. 1 was there.
When an errant ball found its way to the Nets bench in the fourth quarter and the Nets leading by 30, Simmons grabbed the ball, endured the boos from a dwindling crowd on its last gap and threw it to a referee. It was a hat tip to his former fans, a group of sports-crazed Philadelphians that he couldn’t be happier to no longer play in front of.
Everyone thought that Simmons needed to get it over with and show up in front of Sixers fans and take the boos. Given how erratic the Sixers played, perhaps it was the Sixers themselves who needed to get over the awkward encounter with their ex the most.
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