Bill Simmons is furious with ESPN after a joke he made about Dwyane Wade’s bum knees was censored from a SportsCenter broadcast.
Simmons was discussing the Heat’s win in Game 4 on Thursday when he talked about the rejuvenated Dwyane Wade. Simmons joked that if Wade wanted to recover in time for Game 5, he can just “go to Germany again.”
The joke was in reference to a number of players who have traveled to Germany for a controversial knee procedure called platelet-rich plasma therapy. Tiger Woods and Kobe Bryant have both gotten it, and the procedure is credited with helping them achieve new levels of success after long careers.
Wade had struggled this season and postseason to find the explosiveness he had earlier in his career, but he reached back in Game 4 and unleashed a vintage Wade performance. He torched the San Antonio Spurs for 32 points on 14-for-25 shooting.
Simmons seemed to have touched a nerve at ESPN with his joke about Wade’s performance . After appearing on the initial broadcast, his joke was cut out of subsequent showings.
Bill Simmons took to Twitter to express his frustration.
Wow, SportsCenter edited my joke out about Wade going to Germany before Game 4 – I should have just ripped people to shreds like SAS did.
— Bill Simmons (@BillSimmons) June 14, 2013
The “SAS” seems to refer to Stephen A. Smith, the boisterous ESPN personality who on SportsCenter laid in to Tiago Splitter of the Spurs.
Simmons, who has not been shy in criticizing the network that pays him, seemed to hint at greater problems.
The rigidity of studio TV is really discouraging. Let’s just say that A LOT makes sense after these past 8 months.
— Bill Simmons (@BillSimmons) June 14, 2013
Bill Simmons has gotten into trouble before for criticizing ESPN. In March the network suspended him from Twitter after he ripped an exchange between ESPN host Skip Bayless and Seattle Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman on First Take , calling it awful and embarrassing
