Nets' Ben Simmons sounds off after fouling out for 2nd time in 3 games

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Ben Simmons called several of the whistles he received "bulls---" after the Nets lost to Memphis.

While Simmons was frustrated with many calls, the one that drew most of his ire was his sixth foul, which came with 3:52 left in the game. Ja Morant waited for Simmons to make a move while he waited for the ball to roll. Simmons made contact with Morant, who was standing a little over the half-court line, and that's when the whistle was blown. Simmons and Nash were shocked.

Simmons watched the play after the game. The foul was not a foul. It is what it is, but it is not a foul. It's frustrating because it's a close game and it's late in the game. The NBA is the game. It's not high school. High school is not what it is. Some people are going to get hurt, some people are going to die.

Simmons was given a technical foul in the first quarter.

Simmons didn't have an explanation for the call. No one had anything to say. The same thing as the technical foul. He said that because Ja had a tech he had to give me one. It wasn't a bad thing. It was not at the ref. I didn't think it was a big deal. People have feelings for one another. I did not curse at him. I never called him anything. Let me get out of here because it was a bulls--- call. I don't want to pay a fine.

Morant told reporters how he baited Simmons into committing a foul. Several years ago, Simmons pulled a similar play.

"If you want to dig up a play, I think my first year in Philadelphia, the same situation happened against Ben in the first half," Morant said. Simmons went to dunk after getting the steal and running through the ball. I was aware of it at that time. I looked at the coach and he tried to say "Oh yeah" when I rolled the ball. I was aware that I had him. I was going to force the ref to make the call because he was going to press up.

Simmons was confused by the way the game was called by the officials.

Simmons said that one way to expect a team to play physical is to come out on defense and play the same way. I don't think we adjusted well.

Simmons had 7 points, 8 assists, 3 rebound, a steal, and 5 turnovers in 28 minutes. After missing almost a year and a half, the 26 year old player is still trying to find his rhythm.

Nash thinks that rust is slowing Simmons down. He has not played a lot of basketball. He is just trying to get his game back. 18 months is a long period of inactiveness. It's very difficult for anyone to play the game.

Nash is confident that Simmons will find his way, even though he feels there will be pain. Nash said he wants Simmons to be more aggressive on the offensive side of the ball, which he thinks will help the swingman's game.

Nets star Kevin Durant doesn't think that the last foul should have been called on Simmons, but he knows that calls are usually even out over the course of a game.

"I didn't think it was a foul, but it's what it is," he said. "Ben's a veteran in this league, so he trusts himself, and it's just about bouncing back next game."

The Nets need to trust Simmons' professionalism and help him overcome the emotional hurdle of foul trouble, according to Irving. Simmons was in the middle of a preseason game when he got into trouble.

The relationship that we've developed is just holding each other to that high standard and knowing that we're capable of doing some special things night to night but a lot of it is mental. When you're coming off an injury, it's important to push through what you feel you can do.