Ben Simmons didn’t take kindly to being heckled by a fan before getting passionately defended by his teammate on the way back to the Nets locker room after a loss to the Magic.
A video posted to social media captured what appeared to be a young fan calling Simmons “trash” after the Nets star passed him in the players’ tunnel at Kia Arena in Orlando after Brooklyn fell 116-101 to the home team on Friday night.
Simmons kept walking but said: “Why didn’t you say it when I was there, p–y?”
The situation didn’t end there.
Nets guard Dennis Schroder — in his second season in Brooklyn — came back and asked a different fan, “Who taking s–t about Ben?” The fan immediately pointed down the line.
Schroder went over and confronted the heckler, but what was said could not be made out on the video.
An adult — who the social media post claims is the person’s father — tried to get the young fan to walk away from the situation as other Nets players lingered.
The situation finally diffused after a short argument between the heckler and Schroder.
Simmons has seven points, six rounds and just three assists in the game, the Nets’ second-straight defeat to begin the season.
The former No. 1 overall pick by the 76ers has been limited by injuries and played in just 57 games total over his first two seasons with the Nets.
It has made him an easy target for critics.
Even when playing, he has been far from the All-Star former he showed in Philly, averaging just 6.7 points, 6.7 rebounds and 6.0 assists during his two-plus season in Brooklyn.