Ex-NBA Star Urges GMs to Pick Victor Oladipo After Slamming Ben Simmons for Quitting Basketball

Victor Oladipo published an open letter to every NBA general manager on Sept. 1. “I believe my body is finally right,” he wrote. “What I’m asking for right now is an opportunity to prove it.” After Ben Simmons agreed to a one-year deal with the Sacramento Kings.

Patrick Beverley watched both stories and did not call it a coincidence.

“I don’t think it’s fair that you can quit the game of basketball and come back,” Beverley said. “You can quit because the game is hard and it’s stressful and you’re not playing well and the fans are on you and the media is on you."

"You can quit and have an opportunity to come back," he added. "We’ve been looking at Victor Oladipo, who’s been competing, who’s degraded himself, went to the D-League, right? Or G League. We witnessed Oladipo work out in front of a ton of coaches and GMs and writing letters. This is the guy you pick?”

Simmons signed for $3.5 million after sitting out all of 2025-26. His last NBA minutes came in 2024-25 with Brooklyn and the Clippers: 5.0 points, 5.6 assists, 4.7 rebounds in 51 games.

In June, he told Men’s Health he “needed to get away” and “find myself again.” He worked out well enough in an Australian mini-camp and in front of Doug Christie that Scott Perry closed it.

Oladipo has not played an NBA game since tearing his left patellar tendon with Miami in April 2023. He went to the Wisconsin Herd last season and averaged 13.5 points, 4.6 rebounds and 3.9 assists.

In July, he ran a Las Vegas pro day led by Phil Handy and invited every front office that would walk in. He wrote the letter. The Heat let him train at the Kaseya Center.

Sacramento had his name on the same veteran-guard list as Simmons. They picked the other one.

The Kings needed a veteran behind rookie Darius Acuff Jr. Westbrook retired. Cameron Payne and Gabe Vincent were in the mix. Oladipo was in the mix. Perry still flew to Miami to watch Simmons, then brought him to Sacramento.

Marc J. Spears said that Christie liked what he saw. That is how a three-time All-Star who sat out a year beats a two-time All-Star who spent a year in the G League asking for a chance.

Patrick Beverley is not a general manager. His argument is simple enough: if you are handing out last chances, Victor Oladipo already took the demotion. Ben Simmons took the year off. GMs just told the league which path still gets you paid.