Various analyses reveal that Simmons was the most talked-about Australian athlete across all news and social media platforms last year, a 12-month period that featured an Olympics (that he didn't attend).

Less than a month out from the NBA trade deadline, the Philadelphia star sits in a self-imposed purgatory that's cost him more than $10 million in fines to date.

He can afford it for now given the $170 million, five-year contract extension he signed in 2019, a deal that's become a growing weight around the neck of player and franchise as February 10 draws near.

You wonder how on earth both parties got here. Simmons, after all, was the key plank in the 'process' former general manager Sam Hinkie spoke of so often it became something of a refrain.

'The process' saw the organisation pick Simmons at No. 1 in the 2016 Draft, having picked up its other foundational chip in Joel Embiid at No. 3 in the 2014 class.

After injury delayed his debut season, Simmons was NBA Rookie of the Year in 2018. He's now a three-time All-Star and two-time all All-Defensive First Team honouree.

So where'd it go wrong? It can be almost solely traced back to last season's Eastern Conference semi-finals.

The 76ers secured the top seed for the first time in two decades and were heavily favoured in a semi-final series against Atlanta. Naturally pass-first, the lack of a reliable jump-shot has long been the asterisk on Simmons' status as a star.

It was exposed in a seven-game series defeat in which Simmons did not attempt a fourth-quarter shot in five of the seven games, the perception being he was terrified of being sent to the free-throw line.

Given he was shooting at an all-time post-season low of 34 per cent from the line, it wasn't without foundation.

Many, including teammate Embiid, pointed to Simmons decision to pass up an open dunk with three minutes left in game seven, instead dishing to fellow Aussie Mattise Thybulle, as the moment the series slipped.

Post-game, coach Doc Rivers said he didn't know how to answer when asked if Simmons could be a championship-winning point-guard given his late-game tentativeness. It was the first fracture in a relationship that now appears irretrievable.

Simmons made it clear he had no intention of reporting to training camp last September and wished to be traded.

His only appearance in team camp came in October when he was thrown out of practice by Rivers for refusing to engage in a defensive drill.

He copped hefty fines that have since been constant. They paused briefly when Simmons cited mental health concerns, but resumed when he reportedly refused to accept the organisation's help addressing the issue.

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Simmons has re-iterated his desire for a trade and reportedly vowed to never wear a 76ers uniform again. There's no shortage of teams who'd be willing to trade for a three-time All-Star, but that in itself poses a problem.

Famously stubborn Philadelphia president Daryl Morey has said he'd be willing to wait Simmons out for the next four years. Hyperbole perhaps, but it speaks to how determined he is to get All-Star value in any trade deal.

The Sixers are at a pivotal point, with Embiid in his prime and having just signed a four-year $196 million deal. No longer playing the long game, Morey is determined to add a championship-winning foil.

With Embiid leading the Sixers to a 22-16 record that has them sitting fifth in the Eastern Conference standings, it hasn't been situation critical without Simmons.

That's the other fascinating aspect of what was a near daily drama in September-October. So many things have rolled on without him.

It extends to his place in the Australian basketball landscape where there were high hopes he would turn out for the Boomers at the Tokyo Olympics.

There was a reasonable school of thought that his country's medal hopes hinged on his availability, though that's not what coach Brian Goorjian was pitching in his conversations with the 25-year-old.

"I have a really good relationship with Ben, he played for my brother [Kevin Goorjian] at Box Hill [Secondary College], and I feel in a really good headspace with him," Goorjian said.

"I definitely wasn't trying to recruit Ben, I just knew we had a good team and good environment that, under the circumstances, was something he would really enjoy.

"I said 'look, this has been a bit rough, but I think if you took the opportunity and jumped into our camp with Patty [Mills] and Joe [Ingles] you'd love basketball again.

"I said 'you'll have fun and it'll blossom. It would be good for you and it would be good for us'."

Simmons' decision not answer the call became almost moot as the Boomers secured a breakthrough bronze medal without him.

Mills has earned national icon status for his role in leading the national team, with his incredible form for the Brooklyn Nets a flow-on.

Jock Landale turned it into an NBA opportunity with San Antonio, while the likes of Thybulle, Josh Green and Dante Exum have also shown the ongoing gains of being in the Boomers environment.

It was something many felt Simmons would have benefited from in his current predicament, though Goorjian remains entirely comfortable with the decision.

"I honestly thought that he was going to play but I understand why he didn't," Goorjian said.

"I think it all shifted with that last [NBA playoffs] series. It finished like it did and you're thinking 'if he comes into this, how are the teams going to play him with the [FIBA] rules? Are they going to just stand underneath the basket and, every time he comes in the paint, belt him and put him at the foul-line?'

"He was in a brittle position. He'd have been playing with a group of players he's never played with, for a coach he's never played for, and he was in that box of how [the NBA season] finished."

There's no doubt the Boomers could have gone even further with Simmons on board, but medaling without him is proof the game waits for no one, certainly not Australian basketball.

While Simmons appeared a once-in-a-generation Australian talent, the emergence of Josh Giddey is set to see an Aussie claim NBA Rookie of the Year honours for the second time in five years.

In his first season with Oklahoma City, and just year out of the NBL, Giddey recently became the youngest player ever to notch a triple-double.

Goorjian dealt with the 19-year-old in Boomers camp prior to Tokyo, but has still been taken aback by his rapid adjustment to the NBA.

"Everybody knew he had special qualities and there was no doubt he was an NBA player, but I don't think anyone anticipated what he's done," Goorjian said.

"He went to a team that's rebuilding, they've given him a tremendous opportunity, and he's taken full advantage of that.

"With the COVID situation there's a lot of G-League guys coming in so he's really got an opportunity to have the ball in his hands, get comfortable and build confidence.

"You look at Australian basketball history... there's been guys that are shooters, there's guys that have been big, I don't think there's been anybody like him that is so great at making everybody else around him better with the ball in his hands."

Ironically, it's what people were saying about Simmons not too long ago. Things do change quickly and could very likely do so again before February 10.

Having first watched a 14-year-old Simmons hoop at Box Hill a decade ago, Goorjian is confident he still has a bright future in both the NBA and in a Boomers singlet.

"What Josh is doing is incredible, and maybe he'll get there, but Ben was certainly the first Australian [NBA] franchise guy," Goorjian said.

"I firmly believe he's going to come out of this and get picked up by somebody he's excited to go play for and, when he gets rolling, he'll come in and join the Boomers. I really believe that.

"I think he wants to, and I think the next step for him is going to be good. When he comes out of that, he's going to be good for the Boomers and the Boomers will be good for him."

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