The Philadelphia 76ers and Ben Simmons continue to be in the limelight as the Aussie has refused to report to training camp. He's even said he'll never play for the franchise again and is persisting he wants to be traded. Meanwhile, the Sixers didn't pay him his latest $8.25 million because of his absence, which will likely just frustrate Simmons even more.

This whole situation isn't something we haven't seen before, though. The Timberwolves and Rockets have dealt with a similar situation involving Jimmy Butler and James Harden. The Athletic even reached out to former members of the Minnesota organization to get their take on how the Sixers should go about their business with either swaying Simmons to remain in Philly, or cut ties altogether. According to him, the Sixers aren't exactly doing enough to convince Simmons to still play for the team.

“I don’t get the sense they’re trying to change Ben’s mind,” a former Timberwolves front office member said of the Sixers. “But you can’t have the player show up if he’s not all in. Either stay away or come and play and do your job. It’s got to be one or the other. If he wants to stay away, stay far away.”

Of course, Butler was vocal on his desire to leave Minnesota and eventually got his way. Harden meanwhile, held out from training camp and was even seen partying at nightclubs and strip clubs before the Rockets ultimately fulfilled his wish and traded him to the Brooklyn Nets in January.

As for the Sixers, other than the likes of Joel Embiid and Co. ready to hop on a flight to LA to convince Simmons to stay, Philly hasn't exactly done a lot. Is Daryl Morey calling the 25-year-old? Is Doc Rivers letting Simmons know first-hand how much he values him? We've heard it all in interviews from the Sixers head coach, but clearly, there's a huge lack of confidence in Simmons after his collapse in the playoffs. He needs to feel wanted.

However, it's not like the organization hasn't treated him well in the past. At this point, his trade value has plummeted and it's unlikely he gets moved before tip-off in a couple of weeks. There's still time to repair the relationship, but the Sixers have to do their part as well and reach out to Ben Simmons. He can still be valuable to this team. If the disgruntled star says face to face he wants out, then it could be time to move on.