Philadelphia 76ers: Offseason was what Ben Simmons needed

Philadelphia 76ers star point guard Ben Simmons reveals just how important this past offseason was for him on multiple levels.

Just like in society, mental health and overall well-being can be a forgotten aspect of the NBA. The NBA season cannot only wear players down physically, but mentally as well. Recently, the Philadelphia 76ers franchise point guard Ben Simmons opened up about his personal well-being last season and how it changed over the summer, per Rob Maaddi of the Associated Press.

"“‘I feel like this summer I fell in love with the game again…I felt like the past season I lost that enjoyment side of it but I feel like this summer has been huge for me. Just the work I’ve been putting in, I kinda fell in love with putting that work in again and I’ve been in the gym every day working and the results have been paying off…'”"

It’s sad to hear that Simmons didn’t have fun this past season. The Sixers ended with the third best record in the Eastern Conference. Simmons was named to his first All-Star game, while averaging 16.9 points, 8.8 rebounds, 7.7 assists, 1.4 steals and 0.8 blocks. Yet, despite the personal success, it’s somewhat understandable if he struggled from a mental aspect last season.

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The team itself went through a lot of turnover. Losing long time teammates like Robert Covington and Dario Saric early in the season might have been hard for the second year point guard to handle. Adding big name stars like Jimmy Butler and Tobias Harris put championship aspirations around the franchise. With Simmons being the point guard and a leader, that might have caused a lot of pressure on him.

The team falling short of those title hopes must have hurt as well. Then, there was the constant pressure for him to take jump shots in games. It was clear last season that he wasn’t ready to add that aspect into his personal play style, but media and fan pressure to do so probably wasn’t easy to handle.

Simmons was quoted about the struggle that came with the pressure of adding a jump shot to his game.

"“‘I think sometimes you kind of get too deep into it where you listen to other people which should never be the thing you do unless they’re giving you positive feedback or trying to help you get better because there’s a lot of negativity out there…It’s huge once you kind of block that out, you don’t really care, you kinda go out there feeling free. You don’t care if you miss a shot because everyone misses a shot…'”"

Despite the possible things that could have caused Simmons to struggle to have positive feelings last season, he was able to overcome it with the work that he put into his game this past summer. It probably helped that Sixers invested in him long term as well.

Not only with the five-year max rookie extension he received, but also moving on from a ball dominant player in Butler. With Butler gone, Simmons won’t be splitting the primary playmaker role entering this season, like he did with Butler last year.

Simmons has a lot of positives looking head into this season. He has two new and very good locker room guys on the roster in Josh Richardson and Al Horford. The 76ers also look to be a top team in the NBA. Based on a video released and head coach Brett Brown’s comments on Simmons’ jump shot, the point guard has new confidence and a tool to add to his overall game this year.

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Heading into a season where the Philadelphia 76ers are in the mix for an NBA title, it’s great to hear that the team’s star point guard has a positive mindset and attitude. It’s clear that the work Simmons did this summer will not only help his jump shot improve, but has also improved his mental health in regards to his approach to basketball.