Ben Simmons is currently focused on helping the Philadelphia 76ers fully dominate the Eastern Conference and win the 2019 NBA championship title, but when the 2018-19 NBA season is over, the former No. 1 overall pick is expected to have a negotiation regarding his future in the City of Brotherly Love. Simmons will be eligible to sign a five-year maximum contract extension with the Sixers next July.
Most people expect Ben Simmons to ink a new deal with the Sixers since no one in league history has ever turned down a maximum extension of a rookie contract offer. However, according to Deadspin , anything can happen to a player who is being represented by Rich Paul of Klutch Sports Group.
“How long Simmons will stay in Philadelphia is a question that promises to become more pressing by the summer of 2020, if not sooner. As recent developments with client Anthony Davis have shown, Klutch is an unusually bold agency, and one that shares James’s outlook when it comes to clients knowing their worth and demanding to be paid accordingly. That spirit was clearly evident in Simmons’ distaste for the NCAA, and sitcom aside, it’s worth wondering whether Simmons’ family plan is any less instrumental or goal-oriented where Philadelphia is concerned.”
Let’s talk about the upcoming summer for Klutch star Ben Simmons https://t.co/x5F6a7vgbr
— LeBron Wire (@LeBron_Wire) February 26, 2019
The Sixers will undeniably be in huge trouble if Ben Simmons chooses to accept the default qualifying offer that would pay him $10 million for the 2020-21 NBA season instead of signing the rookie max extension. When he becomes an unrestricted free agent in the summer of 2021, Deadspin opened up the possibility that Simmons may consider leaving the Sixers to team up with Rich Paul’s biggest client and close pal, LeBron James, in Los Angeles.
When that happens, LeBron James will already be entering the final year of the four-year, $153 million contract he signed with the Lakers next summer. If ever James retires, Lakers President of Basketball Operations Magic Johnson and General Manager Rob Pelinka will confidently pass the franchise’s torch to Ben Simmons. If everything goes as Rich Paul planned, Simmons and Anthony Davis could be the superstars who will lead the Lakers back to title contention in the post-LeBron era.
Even before he entered the NBA in 2016, Ben Simmons has already expressed strong interest in playing for the Purple and Gold. Simmons has now more reason to sign with the Lakers since he’s currently dating a popular model, Kendall Jenner, who lives in Los Angeles.
As of now, it remains unknown if Ben Simmons will really decline the rookie max extension with the Sixers next July or not. Expect more rumors to circulate around Simmons until he makes a decision in the 2019 NBA offseason.
