Sean Marks spoke to the media on Friday, a day after executing a trade sending James Harden to Philadelphia for Ben Simmons, Seth Curry, Andre Drummond and two first-round picks.
Marks talked about how the trade came together and how the players fit.
He said Simmons is currently undergoing physicals and an MRI and hasn’t taken the court yet (the MRI for Simmons was part of the normal post-trade physical, per the team).
Simmons will work on his conditioning with the Nets before he takes the court.
The 25-year-old requested a trade from Philadelphia in the offseason and sat out of Sixers games and practices this season, reportedly citing mental health issues.
Marks was asked on Friday if he knows Simmons is well enough to get back on the court.
“I’ve only had one conversation, two conversations with Ben now. One was last night once the trade was complete and then this morning when I saw him doing his physicals. Like all players, you’re here to support them. Everybody’s going through different things in life outside of basketball and we’re here to support Ben, we’re here to support our entire group, our entire organization,” the GM said.
“All I can tell you is he was ecstatic about the circumstances that he was walking into and so are we. We’re thrilled to get him on board and we’ll be here to support him from a physical standpoint, from a mental standpoint and get him engaged and get him around our group.
“I think that’s cathartic unto itself. When you have a guy who obviously needs, everyone likes their arm around each other and a hug every now and then and support and so forth. That’s what we’re going to go into this situation with arms wide open, support him, support the new players to our team and get them together."
It’s unclear when Simmons will play in his first game with Brooklyn. The trade that sent Simmons to Philadelphia and Harden to Brooklyn was rumored for weeks due to Harden’s unhappiness in Brooklyn.
The Nets had known since early December – at the latest – that Philadelphia was a potential suitor for Harden, as SNY reported.
The reports of Philadelphia’s interest were stronger in the days before the trade. Earlier this week, The Athletic reported that Philadelphia strongly believed Harden wasn’t going to re-sign with the Nets.
The idea that the Sixers strongly believed Harden wasn’t going to re-sign with the Nets this summer led to conjecture that the Sixers may have tampered during the process.
Marks was asked on Friday if he felt the Sixers had tampered during the trade process.
“I think that’s, unfortunately, the world we live in right now, so much of this is being played out in the media. So much of this is, whether it’s scuttlebutt, hearsay, and so forth, it’s just the nature of the beast,” Marks said.
“It’s just the nature of the world we’re in. I’m not going to start making accusations at everybody else. Again, this particular set of circumstances was played out in the media far earlier than any conversations were ever had. I don’t know and again if this is where it ends up, that will be completely up to the league to look into these set of circumstances.”
According to the NBA Constitution, league commissioner Adam Silver can conduct an investigation into tampering on his discretion or based on allegations from another team.
It’s worth noting in this instance that, per a league source familiar with the dynamic, Nets and Sixers ownership have a "strong relationship" and Sixers GM Daryl Morey and Marks have "a very good personal and professional relationship."
Given that, it would be surprising if the Nets accused Philadelphia of tampering. Also, given the fact that the Nets voluntarily traded Harden, you’d think that they would be less concerned about any potential tampering.
