Shaquille O'Neal Says 'I'd Knock His Ass Out' If Him And Ben Simmons Were Teammates

Shaquille O'Neal has absolutely unloaded on Ben Simmons after the Philadelphia 76ers went crashing out of the Eastern Conference semi-finals.

The Sixers were sent packing thanks to a 103-96 loss in Game 7 against the Atlanta Hawks, a demoralising defeat where an out-of-form Simmons was benched for the last couple of possession.

The Aussie registered the worst free thrown percentage in NBA postseason history (just 34.2%) across the series, leading for many Philly fans to believe he could be traded next season.

Now four-time NBA champion Shaq has gone to town on him, saying he would have "knocked his ass out" if the two were teammates.

"If I played Game 1 and 2 and I know I'm not helping my teammates, what do you think I'm going to do in Game 3?" Shaq said.

"It don't take seven games to realise that, I don't wanna hear that, man. It don't take seven games for you to know that you're not playing right, get right. He didn't get double-teamed, just be aggressive, that's all I want. I don't want to hear all that, stop that.

"If he was in my locker room I would have knocked his ass out. What do you mean? I don't want to hear that, get out of my face with that."

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Former No.1 overall draft pick Simmons only scored 5 points in Game 7 against Trae Young and the Hawks.

And in the dying embers of the tie, head coach Doc Rivers was forced to sit the Aussie out over fears that he might have to make a game-winning free throw or three-point attempt.

After the defeat, Simmons was well aware that he wasn't up to the standards that has seen him earn three All-Star appearances across his young career.

"I ain't shoot well from the line this series," he told ESPN.

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"Offensively, I wasn't there. I didn't do enough for my teammates. There's a lot of things that I need to work on.

"The first thing I'm going to do is clear my mind and get my mental right. You got to be mentally tough. You can't take games for granted. Especially in the playoffs. Every game matters. Every possession matters."

Topics: Basketball, NBA, nba news, Shaq, Ben Simmons, Australia

Max Sherry

Max Sherry is a journalist for SPORTbible Australia. After migrating Down Under from London as a teenager, he instantly fell in love with Aussie sport and its culture. From NRL to AFL, cricket to rugby — you name it, Max watches it (with a beer in hand, of course). During his time at Fox Sports, he worked in the football department covering the Premier League, A-League, Socceroos and Matildas. Born a stone's throw away from West Ham's training ground, Max is obviously a die-hard Liverpool fan.

@maxysherry