Simmons didn’t break early, Rivers said
PHILADELPHIA » If Ben Simmons was in any trouble for leaving Brooklyn Thursday before being cleared by the Sixers, it was news to one person: The one who would be responsible for any discipline.
“It wasn’t a mix-up,” Doc Rivers said Tuesday, before a game against the Miami Heat at the Wells Fargo Center. “There was no ‘up.’”
According to a Yahoo report Tuesday, Simmons evacuated New York last Thursday after understanding that Seth Curry had tested positive for coronavirus and before the Sixers could be ordered into a quarantine, as per NBA protocols.
Lending strength to the report was that Simmons was such a late scratch two days later that the Sixers were fined $25,000 for failing to list him on an injury report with swelling in his surgically repaired left knee. Nor did Simmons accompany the Sixers for a Monday game in Atlanta.
Simmons had not been made available for comment by the Sixers during his absence or before the Miami game.
“It wasn’t the way it sounds,” Rivers said.
“Obviously, that night we were in disarray. A bunch of guys were ordering cars because we all did think we could go back home. Ben was on his way. I called him and told him he couldn’t because of league protocols. And he just turned around and came back.”
Rivers seemed puzzled by the report.
“At the time, even I was ordering a car,” he said. “We didn’t know what we could do. The next day, we thought we could leave and get tested at home. Then we were told we could not do that. After that game, there were a lot of moving parts going on at the same time.”
Simmons was cleared to play and was in the starting lineup Tuesday.
“I don’t read,” Rivers said. “So I heard. But the way it sounded, it was some kind of a bad thing. It wasn’t. It was just the way it was.”
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With Joel Embiid having returned Monday and Simmons back Tuesday, the Sixers were growing closer to being whole after having as few as seven players available to play in a Saturday loss to Denver.
Due to health protocols, the Sixers were without Seth Curry, Shake Milton, Matisse Thybulle, Tobias Harris, Vincent Poirier and Terrance Ferguson Tuesday.
Furkan Korkmaz missed his ninth con
secutive game with a left abductor strain, but was making progress, the Sixers said. Though heavily taped, Korkmaz appeared to move without difficulty during an on-court pregame workout Tuesday.
Korkmaz is not expected to play Thursday against Miami but will be re-evaluated before a Saturday game in Memphis.
Rivers started Embiid, Simmons, Danny Green, Mike Scott and Tyrese Maxey Tuesday.
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Miami was without Bam Adebayo, Avery Bradley, Jimmy Butler, Goran Dragic, Udonis Haslem, Kendrick Nunn and KZ Okpala due to virus protocols.
“We do need to keep this in mind,” coach Eric Spoelstra said. “Those players are safe and they’re healthy. We continue to test. And that’s the most important thing. We take great pride in our organization with our structure, our discipline and how it has applied to the protocols and adherence to everything.
“We do everything possible to keep our players safe and healthy.”
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Rivers has often said that Pat Riley, president of the Heat, has had a big influence on his coaching career.
“His clothing style, I couldn’t incorporate that,” said Rivers, who played for Riley with the Knicks. “But Pat had this ability to get every player to buy into his role, to get every player to understand that there is something bigger than himself and that you play for the team. He did that every year.
“I thought he was the best I’ve ever seen in that regard.”
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The Sixers will host Miami again Thursday. Originally, the game was to begin at
7:30. Since TNT instead will carry the Houston game at San Antonio, the Sixers and Heat have been rescheduled for 7 p.m.