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- Shaquille O’Neal says Ben Simmons was not happy with some comments that were directed his way on a recent edition of Inside the NBA
- Shaq received some heated DMs from the guard after refusing to use his actual name on the broadcast
- Read more NBA news here
It’s been an interesting season (or lack thereof) for Ben Simmons, who has already been forced to forfeit close to $20 million after refusing to take the court for the 76ers and currently stands to miss out on every single penny of the $31 million he was slated to make by playing this year.
Simmons has been roundly criticized for his decision to hold out after deciding he wanted out of Philadelphia, a conclusion he appeared to settle on around the same time 76ers fans started burning his jersey over a costly brain fart that led to the team being eliminated from the playoffs in 2021.
Last week, Shaquille O’Neal turned his attention to Simmons during an Inside the NBA segment where he brutally took aim at Schrödinger’s 76er while using monikers including “crybaby” and “the other guy” instead of his actual name.
"Great players get criticized. But the great players also step up to the criticism and perform. So this other guy, I don't respect him. I'd get rid of him." –– @SHAQ
Do you agree with Shaq's take on Ben Simmons?pic.twitter.com/EiJ4fzE9lR
— Sports Illustrated (@SInow) January 28, 2022
It appears Simmons did not take kindly to that development, as Shaq used the latest episode of his podcast to reveal Simmons slid into his DMs to share some choice words before the two men engaged in a bit of a back and forth.
Here’s what Shaq had to say via Yahoo Sports:
Shaq: He kinda got in my DM and said some things, and I said some things back.
Nischelle Turner: What’d he say? Tell us, c’mon.
Shaq: I can’t do that.
Turner: He said some things?
Shaq: No, I can’t do that.
Turner: So wait, Ben Simmons DM’d you after he heard what you said last week?
Shaq: All I said is, ‘You’re leaving your man out there, you need to play.’ That’s all I said. He said some things, but I’m not going to elaborate on what he said because that’s not cool… He was mad.
It’s slightly frustrating he declined to reveal more, but you have to give him credit where credit is due for not violating the sanctity of DMs.