Ben Simmons has been ruled out for the rest of the season with injury – and 76ers general manager Bryan Colangelo said the No1 draft pick was “heartbroken” at the news.
Simmons won’t play again this season after doctors said his right foot, which was operated on last year, hasn’t healed as quickly as expected.
The 20-year-old Australian fractured the fifth metatarsal bone during training camp in October, and hasn’t played a competitive game since.
Colangelo said: “We’ve always anticipated that there would be an opportunity for him to play, hopefully this season. But there was always an outside chance that it didn’t happen because there wasn’t complete or full healing.
“We were not going to put Ben Simmons in a situation where he was at risk for a refracture.”
The 6f 10in former LSU standout, who was born in Melbourne, was Philadelphia’s first No1 overall pick since Allen Iverson in 1996. The team originally said they hoped Simmons could play after three months of rest – but his much-anticipated NBA debut will have to wait until next season.
Nerlens Noel and Joel Embiid also missed their whole first professional season with the 76ers.
Colangelo said of Simmons’ injury: “There are genetic things that change the healing patterns of people. So if everybody had done their research and saw that most Jones fractures took three to four months, great. But it’s not three to four months in every case, it’s three to four months in most cases.
“He’s heartbroken. He wants to play. He wants to be out there. It’s eating him alive, I’m sure.”
Colangelo also confirmed that Embiid will miss at least four games because of a bruised left knee that has sidelined him for 11 of the last 12 games.
The Sixers have already doubled last year’s win total. They’re 21-35 going into Friday night’s game against Washington.
