Danny Green Would Be 'Surprised' if Ben Simmons Faces Sixers Next Month

The Philadelphia 76ers have missed their three-time All-Star, Ben Simmons, all season long. As the Defensive Player of the Year runner-up requested a trade during the offseason, he made it clear that his playing days with the Sixers are over.

Philly's front office attempted to move Simmons before the 2021-2022 season started, but they didn't have any luck. When team officials tried to convince Simmons to return and play for them ahead of training camp, Simmons made his intentions clear.

With plans to hold out, Simmons hoped he could force the Sixers' hand to trade him away even if it's for less than what they desired. But Daryl Morey made it clear that he would hold onto Simmons as long as he couldn't gain another star by trading him away.

Morey's patience finally paid off over 50 games into the 2021-2022 NBA season. After nearly a week's worth of negotiating, Morey struck a deal with the Brooklyn Nets. By sending Simmons, Seth Curry, Andre Drummond, and picks to the Nets, the 76ers landed James Harden and Paul Millsap.

Now that Simmons is a member of the Nets, he has started to officially ramp up action to return to the court to make his 2021-2022 season debut. Considering the Nets are division rivals of the Sixers, the former Philadelphia draft pick is scheduled to face his former team on March 10th.

Will Simmons be ready by then? Nobody can say for sure. When asked if he planned to play in that matchup during his introductory press conference last week, Simmons mentioned that he hoped he could play in that game.

However, Sixers veteran Danny Green has his doubts.

Green Expresses Doubt

"Will we shake hands to start? Probably not," Green said on the latest episode of Inside the Green Room. "First, I'd be highly surprised if he even plays in that game. I don't know where his health is mentally or physically. I know he had other issues, and we all know that he doesn't like to play in Philly. So, if he does play that game, I'd be highly surprised."

As it's been heavily speculated that part of Simmons' refusal to play for the Sixers this season was that he couldn't face the home crowd after a disappointing seven-game series in the second round of the playoffs last year, it doesn't come as a surprise that many believe Simmons won't play in South Philly in a couple of weeks.

Since Simmons has yet to make his Nets debut, it's difficult to tell whether he'll be ready to play by March 10th or not. If he does, though, Green anticipates the Wells Fargo Center will be similar to a playoff environment and doesn't anticipate Simmons shaking hands with his former teammates before or after the game.

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