NBA Basketball news: How Ben Simmons can bury his mental demons to revive his NBA career

Boomers great Chris Anstey is adamant Ben Simmons can bury his on-court demons and turn his career around by using the blueprint of one of the NBA’s biggest stars.

How Ben Simmons can emulate the NBA’s reigning champion and revive his career. Photo: Tim Nwachukwu/Getty Images/AFP.

Ben Simmons can rebuild his image as a legitimate NBA superstar and bury his on-court demons if he can master the mental game of life in the world’s toughest basketball arena.

That is the assessment of Australian Boomers legend Chris Anstey in a week where reports surfaced that Simmons had virtually severed ties with officials at his team the Philadelphia 76ers — almost assuring the Australian point guard will be traded before the start of the next NBA season.

Simmons has suffered a rocky run since the 76ers dramatic exit from the NBA finals last season, with fans taking aim at his shonky shooting and he then further raised eyebrows in Australia when he withdrew from the Boomers’ Olympic campaign and missed out on a bronze medal in Tokyo.

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This all happened amongst the backdrop of family turmoil after Simmons’ sister Olivia made allegations that she was sexually assaulted by their half-brother, Sean Tribe, who denied the claims.

Last month a court banned her from repeating the claims after she failed to defend defamation proceedings launched by Tribe, who also acts as Ben’s manager.

Ben Simmons is working hard on his game after a disappointing end to the NBA season. Picture: Tim Nwachukwu/Getty Images

The family situation has been a distraction that has forced the 76ers star to retreat into his shell and now his relationship with 76ers officials has deteriorated to the point where he no longer wants to be at the franchise and has no desire to attend training camp.

Anstey, who had NBA stints with Dallas and Chicago in the late 90s and early 2000s, can understand why Simmons has put his “wall up” and isn’t willing to let anyone inside but he strongly believes he can turn his career around in the coming years.

“I think Australia really wants to love Ben Simmons, and I think he’ll have his chance,” he said. “He has just got to figure out when that is and run with it.

“Ben is an exceptional basketball player and I’m excited to see where he ends up. Whatever he does over the next two years is going to be a lot better than what he has done in the last two.”

Anstey feels there is still a bright future for Simmons in the NBA, despite his free-throw shooting, and lack of a jump shot, reaching a career low.

Anstey hasn’t personally seen Simmons work on his shooting, aside from the annual pre-season videos where he excels unlike the regular season, but he likens Ben’s struggles to the following analogy.

“It is a bit like when you keep a secret or you tell a lie, the longer it goes the harder it is for it to come out,” Anstey said about Simmons’ shooting woes. “Ben has resisted the urge to shoot jump shots for so long that it has been built into such a big thing at the 76ers and it has now become mental for him through the whole perceived pressure.

“Could you imagine when he thought about coming down the floor and getting his feet set, he has got to know that there are 18,000 people in that stadium who are going to get up on their feet and it will be this big thing if he misses.

“Ben needs to be somewhere where his shooting isn’t a big thing.”

Ben Simmons’ shooting is at a career low. Picture: Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

Anstey feels Simmons can follow in the footsteps of former Philadelphia guard Markelle Fultz and revive his career at another franchise.

There were high hopes for Fultz at the 76ers after being taken as the No.1 draft pick in 2017, but things quickly turned soar when he suffered a shoulder injury.

Thankfully for Fultz, his stock and confidence improved when he was traded to Orlando in 2019 despite more injury struggles.

Simmons has walked a similar path at the 76ers when it comes to his lack of a jump shot and it’s why Anstey insists the Aussie sensation must leave Philly for the benefit of his career, both mentally and physically.

“I think Ben needs a fresh start for that reason alone where he can walk into a new environment where his shooting isn’t front and centre,” he said.

“Cleary, they’ve read about who he is, but he has got a new beginning and he can come in and shoot the ball from day one without it being a really big deal or as big of a deal that it would be in Philly because he has been known for not shooting for so many years now and the people who were riding him to do it.

“But if he moves teams there will be a positive feel about the place.”

And there is superstar precedent for Simmons to succeed.

Reigning NBA champion and two-time league MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo battled so badly with his free-throw shooting during the Bucks’ recent Finals series against Phoenix that he had the whole crowd booing before each attempted shot.

The jibes from the stands rattled Antetokounmpo at stages, but he showcased impressive fortitude to keep persisting.

His resilience, and hard work, was rewarded when he delivered in Game 7 of the NBA Finals by shooting 12 of his 15 free-throw attempts to guide the Bucks to the franchise’s first championship in 50 years as the Finals MVP.

Anstey can see Simmons emulating Antetokounmpo, but only if he is willing to work.

Ben Simmons faces an uncertain future after telling Philadelphia officials he no longer wants to be a Sixer. Photo: Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

“You’ve got to be okay failing, and Ben just has to be OK attempting and failing because it will click one day,” he said.

“He is capable. There is nothing of Ben’s game that people don’t think he is capable of doing.

“I think he is capable of knocking down jump shots to at least create a longer close out like Giannis can and Giannis has proven he can be MVP of the league, MVP of a Finals series and take his team to a championship with a subpar yet improving jump shot and that is where Ben needs to go.

“And I say that because I think he is that talented. I really do.

“He does so many things well that we haven’t spoken about in a couple of years because the focus has been on what he doesn’t do well. But what he does on the defensive end, the passing in the full court, the decision making and rebounding as a guard.

“It is just on Ben being okay failing and determining how hard he works, who he listens to and just really circling the wagons a bit and making sure that he has people in his camp who are doing the right thing by him the person not him the brand.”

Originally published as NBA Basketball news: How Ben Simmons can bury his mental demons to revive his NBA career