NBA News: Sixers Unhappy With Latest Move By Disgruntled Franchise Star

Frustration is undoubtedly mounting on the Philadelphia 76ers' side as they try to mend fences with disgruntled star Ben Simmons.

Unfortunately, the 25-year-old appears to prefer to address his mental health issues without the Sixers' help.

Rather than allow Philly to help him get over his alleged mental health problems, the former top pick opted to work with mental health professionals from the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA), Ramona Shelburne of ESPN reported.

While that makes sense, it also somehow deprives the 76ers of finding out the real progress of Simmons in this aspect.

To make things worse, the 6-foot-11 cager has yet to provide the management any update on his progress to determine his status.

Shelburne also noted that the camp of Simmons will provide an update only when they are comfortable doing so.

Reading between the lines, it is clear that Simmons is nowhere near close to possibly returning to NBA action.

Nothing significant has changed, and the chances of seeing him don the Sixers uniform any time soon is not looking good.

As mentioned in a previous post, it would not be surprising to hear if Simmons would find some other reason to continue holding out for Philly.

Some pundits feel that the mental health angle is just another delaying tactic. But using the “not mentally ready to play” line is something reasonable.

Regardless, the Sixers likely know what they are facing. A trade is not off the table, but the Sixers president made it clear that they want a talented player who has equal or better qualities than the All-Star guard has.

But the longer Simmons holds out, the lower his value becomes.

The fact that he is not playing on the basketball court only diminishes the chances of him improving flaws in his game, notably his shooting stroke.