Nets star Ben Simmons has reportedly filed a grievance to challenge nearly $20 million of salary withheld by the 76ers organization from earlier this season, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, Ramona Shelburne and Bobby Marks report.
Simmons was fined for the games he missed with the 76ers prior to being traded to the Nets in a blockbuster deal at the trade deadline.
The 76ers claimed Simmons breached his player contract by failing to show up for the start of training camp and refusing to play in preseason or regular season games, but Simmons cited his mental health as the reason he didn't participate with the team.
What does this grievance mean for Simmons and the 76ers, and what are the next steps?
Why is Ben Simmons filing a grievance against the 76ers?
Simmons is filing a grievance against the 76ers to challenge the roughly $20 million of salary that was withheld from him for missing games this season.
The 76ers claimed Simmons breached his contract by failing to show up and take part in team activities such as practices and games, but Simmons cited his mental health as the reason he didn't participate.
Simmons "disagreed" with the access that the team and its doctors were given to diagnose and affirm his mental health. Although the two sides tried to resolve the matter without arbitration, those talks reportedly ended without a resolution, which led to the filing of the grievance, according to Wojnarowski.
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Ben Simmons' salary, contract
In 2019, the 76ers signed Simmons to a five-year, $170 million max extension. He was set to make $33 million this season but the 76ers took back a chunk of that for his absences earlier in the season. It started with Simmons' first paycheck on Nov. 15, when Philadelphia began to take back his per-game salary of $360,000 for each contest he missed.
According to Wojnarowski, Simmons received a $16.5 million advance of his $33 million salary, so there wasn't enough money in each paycheck to cover the per-game deductions. As a result, the 76ers were withholding nearly $1.3 million of Simmons' salary in each of his paychecks.
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"That has continued since the trade to the Nets, who were made to deduct salary from Simmons' pay to wire the 76ers," Wojnarowski wrote, according to his sources.
"Because Simmons' last paycheck is on April 30, the deductions should carry over to the offseason. Once again. Simmons will receive a $8.25 million advance on July 1 and Oct. 1."
What are the next steps for Ben Simmons' grievance against the 76ers?
Simmons' grievance against the 76ers will now go through a league arbitration process.
"The NBPA (National Basketball Players Association) is supporting Simmons in the attempt to reclaim his salary," Wojnarowski stated.
There is no timeline available yet as to when Simmons' arbitration process will begin.
