Shaq Criticizes Nets' Ben Simmons: 'Another Bum'

The Nets' forward came under fire from one of the greatest to ever do it.

Feb 8, 2024; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Brooklyn Nets guard Ben Simmons (10) warms up prior to the game against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images / Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images

Shaquille O'Neal has never held back his true feelings towards active NBA players. Over the years Javale McGee, Dwight Howard and Rudy Gobert have been the brunt of the Hall-of-Famer's comments, and it appears Ben Simmons now joins that company.

In an interview with Myles O'Neal of Complex, O'Neal called out the Brooklyn Nets' forward when asked to pick the worst NBA player of all time. After initally answering with Gobert, he quickly offered up Simmons as another option.

"Ben Simmons is another bum... if you sign a contract for 250 (million), show me 250," O'Neal said. "There's a reason why I walk funny, why I can't turn my neck and why I can't do it because I played for my 120. So, you got guys like him that [expletive] the system over there making all this money and they can't [expletive] play."

Shaq named his pick for the Worst NBA Player of All Time… 😶 pic.twitter.com/tsEqJFl2qP

— Complex (@Complex) September 4, 2024

"I don't respect guys like that. Every time I make these comments people think I'm hating, but these are facts. You got teachers, you got firemen, you've got doctors who have real jobs and don't get paid [expletive]."

Simmons typically falls under fire to his long injury history compunded with his large contract. O'Neal becomes the latest critic of the 28-year-old, who hopes to get his career back on track heading into the final year of his five-year $177 million deal he signed back in 2020.

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