Joel Embiid Discusses Difficulty of 'Chasing' Ben Simmons This Season

This past summer, Ben Simmons called it quits on the Philadelphia 76ers. While there have been many theories out there as to why Simmons no longer wanted to play for the team that drafted him first overall and signed him to a max contract extension, the only clear thing was Simmons wanted a fresh start.

When the three-time All-Star became available for a trade, teams inquired but couldn't meet Philadelphia's asking price. Unless Sixers President of Basketball Operations Daryl Morey received an offer with another star in return, the Sixers weren't going to pull the trigger. Meanwhile, Simmons wouldn't play if he had to play for the 76ers.

The staredown between Simmons and the Sixers lasted longer than desired. As the Sixers wanted Simmons to return to the court, the star guard remained committed to his holdout for over 50 games.

Simmons' co-star, Joel Embiid, admitted he attempted to get his now-former teammate back in the mix many times throughout the 2021-2022 season, but Simmons never budged. Recently, during a sit-down interview with ESPN's Malika Andrews, Embiid discussed the difficulty of trying to get Simmons back.

Embiid Speaks Out

"Probably I'd say a week or two before the trade deadline," Embiid said in regards to when he last spoke to Ben Simmons. "He's a great player, and I think whatever he adds to Brooklyn, he's going to take them to another level or two. I did a lot of chasing around to try to get him back and try to make him feel comfortable again. It was tough. I didn't care anymore. If I had pride -- I'm outspoken, and I'm honest -- I could've said a lot of stuff. I still did what I thought was good to do as a teammate."

Embiid showed support for Simmons early on in the process of the All-Star's holdout. So did the rest of his Sixers teammates. However, Embiid did make it clear before the trade deadline that he didn't feel a responsibility to try and convince Simmons to return to the Sixers if he didn't get traded.

Fortunately for Embiid and the Sixers, they don't have to worry about trying to do that. Not only did Simmons get traded on the day of the deadline, but Philadelphia landed a motivated James Harden, who is in Philly to help Embiid out with the Sixers' final push after the All-Star break.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.