MARCH 28: The Nets are officially ruling out Simmons for the rest of the season and playoffs, Vaughn confirmed today (Twitter link via Alex Schiffer of The Athletic). Simmons will go through a rehab program for his back injury and is expected to make a full recovery, Vaughn added.
MARCH 25: The Nets are preparing for Ben Simmons to miss the remainder of the season, writes Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press.
Talking to reporters before Saturday’s game, coach Jacque Vaughn admitted that Simmons is “probably not going to join us for the rest of the year,” although he added that a final decision won’t be made until Simmons meets with a back specialist. The former No. 1 overall pick is suffering from an impingement in his back, which happens when tissue or bone causes nerve fibers to compress.
“For me as a coach, there’s some things that I can control, some things that I can’t control,” Vaughn said. “What I can’t control is the impingement. What I can control is getting this group ready to play. And then in all honesty, the realism that he’s probably not going to join us for the rest of the year … certainty will come once he continues to be looked at by specialists.”
Simmons hasn’t played since February 15 because of his back condition, along with soreness in his left knee. He has been limited to 42 games in his first full season with the Nets, averaging career lows of 6.9 points, 6.3 rebounds and 6.1 assists per contest. He’s shooting 56.6% from the field, but has connected at just 43.9% from the foul line and has missed his only two three-point attempts.
Simmons didn’t play at all last season because of physical and mental issues as well as a lingering dispute with the Sixers prior to being traded to Brooklyn. He will have a full offseason to try to regain the form that made him an All-Star in the previous three seasons.
Simmons has two years remaining on his contract at $37.9MM for next season and $40.3MM for 2024/25.
You think?
Yep! This bum is finished
D
O
G
Might aswell prepare for him to sit out 2023/24 aswell.
He might be of some trade use when his contracts expiring but even then they’d have to give up a lot of picks.
Dude needs to retire. Just mail it in. He’s done.
He already has (if it was up to him)…. He don’t wanna play – he just wants to collect as much as that contract as he can. He literally researches and knows every excuse he can use to keep getting his money, injuries, mental health, etc…
That’s why KLUTCH parted ways with him (No!… it was not a mutual parting of ways)… Klutch doesn’t want to a part of what Been (not Ben) is trying to do.
Jump shot- while I agree strongly with most of this, saying he researched what to say is a stretch. Physical injury and mental injury aren’t exactly rocket science to figure out
Why retire? This pays better.
Worse than a BUST! A mental midget. Sad. Wasted talent.
His career is over
He’s been done for the season since October.
Australia officially washes its hands of Ben Simmons. He’s all yours now America
Hell no. That’s completely unfair.
Throw in Paul Hogan and you have a deal.
Ball for Simmons.
Have Simmons come off the bench.
I mean that is the best the Nets could hope for.
Indeed. I’d take Lavar Ball over Simmons any day of the week.
not liangelo?
I think he means one basketball for Ben Simmons. If it doesn’t have a hole in it, deal.
Let’s be honest, Simmons is done for the rest of his career
When do they start discussing a buyout?
He is the New Symbol for BUST going forward. His name will always be aligned as a quitter.
It’s docs fault.
Then why is he playing worse in BKN than he did in PHL?
Pay the man and then tell him to stay far away from the team.
You just watch he will prove all the haters WRONG!!
You must be smoking some good stuff!
When?? So far he’s proven the haters right!!
Once he plays for china
Damn give the guy a break lol. He’s been dealing with severe injuries and mental health issues.. You just don’t recover from that ish when you go to new team or take a year off. If everyone drilled you for everything you did wrong and criticized you when you played well because you’re not it doing all the time, you’d have mental issues too lol. Like damn, look at the comment section above, no wonder he has mental health issues LBVVS
LOL
Yes, his “mental health issues” magically cleared up the day he was traded.
The NBA (and NFL) are such jokes.
Give me 40 mil per year and I will take the “abuse” from the commenters here. However, I will do so while sitting on the beach lmao.
My mental health is getting worse reading this comment
Nah, he’s earned the criticism and he should take it like a man. Like he took all the praise and adoration as a high school and college phenom and his first few years in the NBA. Getting critiqued isn’t a one way street, especially considering his lack of humility when times we’re going good for him. He’s getting paid an exorbitant amount of money to suck and he’s never done anything to improve his weeknesses.
He’s earned every bit of the negativity coming his way, mental health issues or not.
Unless of course you think other people with mental health issues disperse a “break” like Charles Manson and Jeffrey Daumier?
Bro lied about having “mental health issues”.
BS. The guy has a character flaw. Let’s please not classify this weak minded guy with all of the people who truly have legitimate mental health issues.
Stick a fork in him
That would just prolong his stay on the IR.
He hasn’t played in a game in 2 years. Scoring around 3 points per game isn’t “playing”. Hes the triple single king, 3 points, 3 assist, 6 fouls a game
He couldn’t win an MVP playing in China
No way out but back surgery likely. Simmons appears to be not wanting to do the surgery, and is trying to play with rest & rehab.
It’s a shame where this has gone. But considering Nets are in a playoff race. It’s not looking good for Ben.
Ben already has had back surgery. Unfortunately he waited a yr to have it. He’s not done yet. Too young to call it quits.
He needs a mentor to set him straight. KD and Kyrie couldn’t do it. Or wouldn’t do it. This is a young Nets team. So I doubt he can get it here. With his value so low. You can’t trade him. So it’s wait and see for Nets. I still believe in Ben.
Nets have two #1 picks this yr. Their own and Suns pick.
Not sure a mentor helps Ben here. Ben knows whats wrong with his game. He doesn’t need somebody to tell him what to do, he needs to do it. What’s that saying about leading a horse to water?
Who?
This dude knows what he is doing. Getting that scratch without the sniff
Even if Harden never played for Philadelphia, Sixers win the trade by a mile just because they don’t have to deal with this anymore. Guy is wasting a roster spot at this point.
If Nets win does he still get a ring? That’d be badasz
Biggest bum in the game next to John Wall and Kawhi Leonard
I wish I was 6’10”
I would take a flier if they buy him out and I could get him for the minimum. Otherwise, I hope he enjoys the next few years of getting paid not to play.
He needs to go back to Australia and establish some kind of basketball career in the NBL before he gets another NBA contract.
A team would have to be beyond desperation to give him another NBA contract at this point.
well, he didn’t hurt his back from carrying any teams
Want Simmons to turn it around? Trade him to the Lakers and he’ll be Mr. Invincible. It’s a psychological issue. If you send him to L.A., he may actually want to play.
Nets: okay will trade Simmons for DLO, Deal? :)
His first couple of years I thought wow this guy is awesome and when he develops his shot/game a little he could make the hall. Then I was upset that Philly didn’t push him to develop. But, eventually all the blame lies with him. He makes millions of dollars and can’t even TAKE a shot. BUY A NET, PUT IT IN YOUR DRIVEWAY AND SHOOT. AT LEAST DO SOMETHING. Larry Bird shot on a net attached to a dilapidated barn on a dirt driveway! He wanted to get better! Simmons doesn’t deserve to be in the league with so many other players working hard and growing their game. Injuries and issues aside, he has not developed the basic skills needed to be a basketball player and is now a liability and a strategic nightmare for his coaches. I feel bad but he ruined his game when he chose not to work on it, long before the injuries and ongoing issues. That said, I’m still rooting for him to figure it out.
This news is a shocker.
Awaiting the next weekly obligatory simmons update from the nets.
~Is it a news update if the info is always the same? Asking for a friend.