ESPN personality Stephen A. Smith has always been known to voice his opinions loud and proud for all to hear. And he did exactly that on Wednesday when talking about Brooklyn Nets star Ben Simmons.
Smith hasn’t exactly been Simmons’ biggest fan over the years throughout his injuries and mental struggles in recent years. Perhaps most famously, he called Simmons “the most pathetic excuse for a professional athlete we have ever seen” after Simmons sat out a playoff game with an injury.
His opinion of Simmons hasn’t exactly changed, as he posted a tweet on Wednesday night seemingly discussing Simmons on his podcast The Stephen A. Smith Show on YouTube.
Smith yet again blasted Simmons in this video shared on Twitter, saying that he is “trifling as hell”.
“I’m pretty pissed off at Ben Simmons right now,” said Smith. “I think Ben Simmons at this particular point is trifling as hell. And I say that respectfully because I like him. Last year, he came up to me and really opened up and expressed himself. And I really appreciated that. But I have a problem with him. He’s talking before he actually does. This brother has been the basketball version of Mr. Irrelevant for the last two years.”
Why I’m pissed off at Ben Simmons pic.twitter.com/Fieux2n4te
— Stephen A Smith (@stephenasmith) August 31, 2023
He went on to further criticize Simmons for the large salary he has received in recent years despite largely being away from the basketball court.
“You know what I noticed about Ben Simmons? He always makes sure he gets his money. He’s never so disallusioned or foggy that he forgets when that check gets deposited. Sitting on the bench in orange one week and yellow another. Looking fly as hell. Tremendous basketball player. And to be clear, ain’t shit as a competitor. Enough of the talk, I want to see Ben Simmons playing basketball!”
To be fair, Simmons hasn’t exactly done much recently to prove to his critics he can return to form anytime soon. He has played in just 42 games in the last two seasons dealing with a significant back injury.
Until we see more on the court from Ben Simmons, it seems like he will be a prime target for criticism from Stephen A. Smith…
