Australian basketball star Ben Simmons claims he was turned away from Crown in Melbourne because he is black – but the casino has fired back.
The Philadelphia 76ers player – who is Australia’s highest paid athlete – claimed he and some of his friends were turned away from the casino because of the colour of their skin on Monday.
Some were quick to suggest he may have been turned away for breaching Crown’s dress code by wearing camouflage pants, while there were also claims the sportsman wasn’t carrying ID.
But Simmons hit back and said a friend of his was also wearing camo pants but was let in, and added that he did show ID.
The mystery took another twist on Tuesday morning when Crown issued a statement saying the group was allowed in – calling into question Simmons’ version of events.
Entertainment reporter Peter Ford has hit out at Ben Simmons, who claimed he was denied entry to Crown Casino on Monday because of the colour of his skin, claiming he had violated the dress code with his pants
Simmons was seen earlier outside the casino with a fan, wearing camouflage trackpants
Australian entertainment commentator Peter Ford shared a picture of Crown’s dress code and questioned the athlete’s version of events.
‘Ben Simmons should check the dress code of Crown,’ he wrote on Twitter. ‘Applies to anyone famous or not and any skin colour. He was wearing camouflage pants.’
Simmons was quick to fire back, telling Ford: ‘My friend who got let in also had camouflage pants on.’
Ford then claimed Simmons had failed to show his ID, to which the basketballer responded: ‘Wrong again mate.’
The entertainment reporter later claimed to another person Simmons was ‘disrespectful to security guards’.
A spokeswoman for Crown Casinos told Daily Mail Australia late on Tuesday the group were allowed in, and denies the allegations made by Simmons.
‘Crown strenuously rejects reports that it discriminated against a group of visitors last night,’ she said.
‘Crown’s internal security policy requires our security officers to check identification of those persons they believe to be under the age of 25, this is an enhanced safeguard to ensure that no one under the age of 18 is permitted entry to the Casino Floor as required by law.
‘The group subsequently provided identification and were permitted entry.’
The alleged scandal came to light when the Philadelphia 76ers star on Monday posted a since deleted video to Instagram, shot in the foyer of the Melbourne casino.
Simmons, 23, who recently signed a $242million NBA contract extension, claimed his white friend, Alex Subers, wasn’t checked at the entrance – but the remainder of the group were.
‘I find it so crazy that the only guy who doesn’t get checked to go into the casino is this guy,’ Simmons said in the video, pointing to his friend.
Simmons said while he was in violation of the dress code, his white friend who was also wearing camouflage pants was allowed to enter the casino
Crown Casino (pictured) is yet to comment on Simmons’s allegations
‘I get checked, Mike gets checked and Tys gets checked.’
Simmons then pans the camera around to show his entourage agreeing with his allegations, before zooming in on two security guards standing behind.
‘Thank you Crown Casino, damn, and they didn’t let me in, or him or this guy,’ Simmons continued.
‘Wow, we got a long way to go.’
Ben Simmons sparks romance rumours with model Talia Richman as she joins him at Melbourne AFL game – two months after he split from ex Kendall Jenner
He split from ex-girlfriend Kendall Jenner in May, after over a year of dating.
And now NBA star Ben Simmons, 23, has sparked speculation he has moved with Australian model Talia Richman, 24.
Ben was spotted enjoying an the Essendon vs. Port Adelaide AFL match on Saturday with the beauty from within a private box in Melbourne’s Marvel Stadium.
Moving on? Ben Simmons was spotted enjoying the company of Australian model Talia Richman, 24, in Melbourne on Saturday, as she joined him to watch the AFL at Marvel Stadium
According to news.com.au, Ben was seen enjoying the game while sat with Talia and several friends in their private box.
Daily Mail Australia has contacted representatives for both Ben and Talia for comment.
Like Ben, Talia is originally from Australia, but relocated to the States to pursue her modelling career. She now bases herself in New York.
Heading Stateside: Like Ben, Talia is originally from Australia, but relocated to the States to pursue her modelling career and now bases herself in New York.
Born in London, she grew up in Perth until she was eight years old, before then moving to Brisbane.
The influencer was picked up by GQ in 2016, who tipped her as an up-and-coming talent on the runway. Her Instagram page is littered with shots of her showcasing her modelling credentials.
Brunette beauty Talia has racked up an impressive 104k followers and is often seen posting steamy bikini snaps and smoldering selfies on the social media app.
Stunner: Brunette beauty Talia has racked up an impressive 104k followers and is often seen posting steamy bikini snaps and smoldering selfies on the social media app
Ben’s appearance in Melbourne with the model comes just two months after news surfaced revealing he and his ex Kendall Jenner had split.
The basketball star was first romantically linked to Kendall in March 2018 and the pair dated for over a year, before calling it quits.
In May, an insider told People magazine the couple were officially on a ‘break’.
End of the road: Ben’s appearance in Melbourne with the model comes just two months after news surfaced revealing he and his ex Kendall Jenner have split
Sources claimed: ‘The relationship ran its course. [Kendall] is spending time with her friends and back to being in fun mode.’
The couple were known for keeping their romance relatively private, with Kendall explaining in an interview with Vogue that she doesn’t like to bring ‘too much attention’ to her love life.
‘I’m very young and, right now, I feel like relationships aren’t always super-certain.
‘I don’t want to bring too much attention to something if you don’t really know long term [what it’s going to be],’ she said.
All over: Basketball star Ben was first romantically linked to Kendall in March 2018 and the pair dated for over a year, before reports claimed their romance had ‘ran its course’
Simmons became Australia’s highest paid athlete in July when he inked the $242million contract extension with the 76ers.
The deal is a significant step up from his four-year $37m rookie deal that will see him earn $11.5m this season alone.
Simmons will make a staggering $42m in the first year of his new contract.
His pay will then increase to about $55m in the final years of the deal, alongside an additional $20m from a contract with Nike over five years.
Doubt still hangs over whether the Melbourne-born NBA All-Star will play for Australia later this year at the World Cup in China and in Melbourne and Perth exhibition games.
His absence would be a major blow to the Boomers’ hopes of claiming a medal in China in September and to huge crowds of Australian fans planning to watch him play exhibition games with the Boomers.
Ben Simmons backflips on his commitment to the Australian national team – as he negotiates a whopping $240m NBA contract
Basketball superstar Ben Simmons is ‘doubtful’ to play for Australia at the World Cup.
In a major blow to the Boomers’ hopes of claiming a medal in China in September, Simmons’s US agent Rich Paul said the All-Star guard is more likely to spend his NBA off-season working on his game in preparation for another championship tilt with the Philadelphia 76ers.
The announcement to Australian basketball fans who expected to watch Simmons lead the Boomers against the United States in two pre-World Cup exhibition games in Melbourne in August.
‘Simmons is more likely now to spend his full off-season preparing only for the Sixers season – free of national team responsibilities,’ ESPN reported.
Basketball superstar Ben Simmons is now ‘doubtful’ to play for Australia at the World Cup and will focus his attention to the next season of the NBA playing for the Philadelphia 76ers
Earlier this month the 22-year-old reportedly began negotiating a $240m contract over five years to continue to playing for the Philadelphia team, a deal that if finalised would make him Australia’s highest paid athlete.
The deal faced criticism from those who did not believe he was worth the money due to his lack of a reliable outside shot.
This weakness was exposed badly during at match against the Lakers in February when LeBron James left Simmons undefended to take a three-point shot and he missed.
During the 2018-19 NBA season, Simmons had been cagey when asked by reporters if he would play for Australia at the World Cup, but just days after the end of the 76ers’ season he announced on social media he would play for the Boomers.
Earlier this month the 22-year-old reportedly began negotiating a $240m contract over five years to continue to playing for the Philadelphia team, a deal that if finalised would make him Australia’s highest paid athlete
The Melbourne born star announced his commitment to the Australian nation team before later uploading footage of his accompanying number 25 guernsey last month.
‘I am going to be a Boomer for the upcoming events so stay tuned,’ he said in a video on Twitter.
He then followed the announcement with a sister post to the Chinese social media network Weibo and thanked them for their support in the NBA season.
‘Ni Hao China! Thanks for all the support this season, it was a tough way to go out,’ Simmons captioned the video.
‘I’m happy to say I’m looking forward to representing my country Australia in the upcoming at FIBA World Cup in China.’
The announcement was meet with tremendous support from Australian and Chinese fans.
Simmons was said to be a major highlight in Australia’s World Cup line up and leaves Boomers coach Andrej Lemanis searching for a replacement with the exhibition games against Canada starting in mid August.