It wasn’t mental health. And it wasn’t mean words. At least, not totally.

“It just piled up, a bunch of things that have gone on over the years …

“A lot of things, internally, that had happened over time.”

Humiliation. Embarrassment. Disloyalty. He lost his job, in the playoffs, twice.

That’s why Ben Simmons quit on the 76ers.

As he testified last week, Simmons left Philadelphia after years of perceived betrayal. Over the past four years, with greater surety over the past week, several league sources have painted a picture of a paranoid, jealous, entitled young man: frustrated at his own shortcomings, angry that his limited style of play drew criticism, and so stubborn that his refusal to accept coaching led to debilitating anxieties entirely of his own making.

Simmons expected to be the focal point of The Process, but as the franchise shifted ever more toward Joel Embiid, he felt marginalized. Finally, after a playoff meltdown last June, Simmons decided he no longer could survive in Philadelphia. He boycotted training camp. He skipped the first 54 games, unexcused absences that accrued almost $21 million in fines, citing undisclosed, unverified mental issues. Now, he’s gone, replaced by James Harden.

And yes, there were hard feelings.