Image Source: X
[Saba Sports News] While Donald Trump faced a real and dangerous situation on Saturday night, Ben Simmons found himself trending for an entirely different reason—catching “strays” in the form of online jabs.
After the shooting incident at Trump’s rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, social media users on X began making Simmons the punchline of a dark joke.
The comparison was drawn between the shooter’s inability to hit the target and Simmons’ well-documented hesitance to take shots on the basketball court.
Simmons, a three-time All-Star with a career field goal percentage of 56.0 percent, has been criticized for avoiding long-range shots and has even struggled at times with a reluctance to shoot at all.
This reputation has followed him throughout his career and overshadowed his skills as a versatile playmaker and defender.
Unfortunately for Simmons, this perception has become so ingrained that even unrelated incidents spark comparisons and jokes. In this case, the association reflects the negative side of his public image—one that sees him as timid and ineffective when it comes to shooting.
For better or worse, the narrative of Simmons as a reluctant shooter has become part of his identity, and in moments like these, it surfaces in unflattering ways.