Shaq’s comments on Ben Simmons are correct, yet come across as insensitive

Ben Simmons‘ performance against the Atlanta Hawks in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals drew the ire of Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal. The star for the Philadelphia 76ers was anything but in the fourth quarter with a single point en route to a five-point performance in a loss that sent Philadelphia home for the offseason and the Atlanta Hawks on their way to face the Milwaukee Bucks in the Eastern Conference Finals.

O’Neal was obviously not pleased with the performance and proceeded to call out Simmons following the loss. While he was certainly correct in criticizing how poorly Simmons has played, his words, however, may have been a bit much.

"“If he was in my locker room I would have knocked his a– out. I don’t want to hear that, get out of my face with that.”"

This comes just a day after O’Neal told Simmons to “man up” following a rough performance in Game 6 in which Philadelphia won 104-99 to force the Game 7 back in their home building.

The comments drew a laugh from O’Neal’s colleagues, including Charles Barkley, who made a joke about LSU basketball (where O’Neal and Simmons both played in college), causing O’Neal to try to roast Auburn basketball, which drew even more laughs as it showcased a bit of sensitivity stemming from the big fella.

But Shaq is right. Simmons is a tall player with good skills, but his lack of aggression in the last three games of the series is appalling and warrants scrutiny. Had Simmons been aggressive and lost the series, he would not have been judged as harshly.

Shaq is absolutely right about Ben Simmons’ lack of aggression, as it hindered the Philadelphia 76ers significantly in the NBA playoffs.

In every harsh critique comes a truth that is both painful to take but needs to be heard. Ben Simmons has largely underperformed against the Hawks down the stretch. After the series was tied at 2-2, Simmons recorded single digits in each of the final three games, and it took a monster game from the rest of the team in Game 6 to avoid being sent home early. 8 in Game 5, 6 in Game 6, and 5 in Game 7. Additionally, Simmons’ head coach Doc Rivers sent a scathing critique of his own.

Forget a media personality; if your own head coach calls you out, what does that say? It says a lot, quite frankly, and it looks bad upon the rest of the organization who placed a lot of faith in you, and it hurts your teammates who have to pick up the slack from your participation or lack thereof. They were giving the results, and you were not, and as a result, instead of watching more tape, you are cleaning out your locker and heading home.

The future of Ben Simmons is up in the air at this point. Had he played more aggressively and still lost the series, he would still be critiqued, but it would not be as harsh, and instead, they would have focused on the stuff he did well. That’s not the case here. You have an NBA Hall of Famer calling you out and, in essence, your head coach doing the same thing. Ouch.