Upcoming Nets Training Camp Means Return Of Simmons Hype Machine

Fool Me Once...

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I wouldn’t wish the back pain endured by Brooklyn’s Ben Simmons over the last few years on my most hated player. It can be debilitating and surgery doesn’t always take.

Simmons, the Nets highest paid player coming into this season at over $40 million, is looking to return from a second back procedure in March after playing in just 15 games during the 2023-24 campaign. As such, we’ve entered the promotional portion of his recovery, with various videos on social media hyping his workouts. See Simmons sprint. See him drain jump shots.

Per NetsDaily.com, Simmons has even been running in some 5-on-5 pickups, which could be an indication that he will be ready to fully participate in Nets training camp when it opens in 10 days. Chris Brickley, Simmons’ trainer, recently tweeted, “Ben Simmons is back to playing All-Star talent level basketball. Big season loading.” Brickley added a fire emoji at the end.

From a human perspective, this is welcome news. Credit Simmons for grinding out the rehabilitation program so he can attempt a resumption of his chosen profession. Hopefully, the worst is behind him in terms of back pain.

But as it pertains to the Nets, have we learned nothing? Around this time last year, when the Nets as an organization went out of its way to pump up Simmons’ revival to something close to his prior form (a good portion of Media Day was dedicated to the subject), I warned Nets fans to be skeptical. Not just because of a predisposed antipathy for Simmons the player, which I cop to, but due to the above unpredictability regarding back injury diminishments and/or reoccurrences.

Not that Simmons’ style of play isn’t a factor. I’ve seen others in the media point to how certain players have been able to survive in the league after undergoing multiple surgeries, be it Brook Lopez’s foot or Michael Porter Jr.’s back. Guess what players like these have in common? They can shoot 3-pointers. Lopez probably owes former Nets Head Coach Kenny Atkinson a fixer’s fee for extending his career back in the day by nudging him to expand his range to areas behind the arc. Porter Jr, with three back surgeries under his belt, is a 41% career 3-point shooter.   

Neither player is solely reliant on their speed and athleticism the way Simmons is. For whatever reason, Simmons never developed what has become an increasingly crucial skill in the modern NBA—perimeter shooting. It’s been that way since he was selected No. 1 overall by Philadelphia in the 2016 NBA Draft. Not only has he not improved, he’s gotten worse, especially since he was dealt to Brooklyn in the 2022 James Harden trade.

Even after all of last offseason’s hype videos, Simmons went on to shoot 38-for-54 (70.4%) from within the restricted area…and 5-for-20 (25%) everywhere else, including a pair of misfires from the mid-range area, per NBA.com. Oh, and he shot a career low 40% from the foul line, which extrapolated into what ESPN’s Zach Lowe called “free throw phobia”, whereby Simmons appeared to want no part of the ball in his hands when close to the basket lest he be fouled.

To be fair, the areas Simmons excels in—playing with pace, making “wow” passes, defending multiple positions—were showcased periodically. With him in the lineup, the Nets, a 50-loss team, did go 7-8. However, it should be noted that Brooklyn often performed better with Simmons off the court than on in those contests, per NBA.com net ratings, and that five of those wins came against fellow lottery-bound opponents.

Not to regurgitate old takes, but that’s because NBA offenses can’t function at maximum efficiency when a team places more than one non-shooter on the floor. The Simmons/Nic Claxton pairing posted a horrific minus-21 net rating over 99 shared minutes last season. Simmons/Day’Ron Sharpe was even worse, at minus-25, albeit in a too-small sample of 14 minutes.

The only way things will change this season is if rookie Head Coach Jordi Fernandez has the fortitude to tell Simmons he will be coming off the bench so he can be limited to helping prospect Noah Clowney, who knocked down a respectable 36.4% of his 3-point attempts during his rookie season (including 41.7% over the final 11 games when he began earning regular rotation minutes), defend opposing bigs when Claxton needs a breather. I could see a unit with Simmons, Clowney, Cam Thomas, Jalen Wilson, and another shooter (Cam Johnson, Dorian Finney-Smith, or, if healthy, Bojan Bogdanovic) being somewhat effective during short stretches, preferably when Brooklyn isn’t in the bonus.

That will also depend on whether Simmons has matured past his previous delusions of grandeur, such as when he used to be peeved that the Sixers decided to revolve their franchise around center Joel Embiid over him. Can Simmons be made to understand that the days when he was thrice named an All-Star, including one All-NBA Third Team honor, are in the past?

Publicly (at least through his agent Bernard Lee), Simmons has been complementary regarding how he has been treated by the Nets organization. The Performance Team may not have the grandest record when it comes to injury prevention, but others, including Kevin Durant, have spoken highly of its treatment protocols. Management has gone out if its way to make Simmons feel wanted even when he couldn’t perform. Since this is a contract year for Simmons, however, who knows how he’ll react to any perceived slight such as not starting?  

I get that it isn’t all his fault. I’ve been quite open about blaming Nets General Manager Sean Marks first for taking back such a poor fit with perhaps the worst contract in the league when he had some leverage over Harden and the Sixers. At the time, Simmons had been sitting out all season with mental issues stemming from a variety of factors. To expect him to immediately join a club fighting for playoff positioning was clearly an added risk. Of course, it didn’t take long thereafter for the severe pain that shot down his leg to rear its ugly head. As in, before he could suit up once in a Nets uniform.

The Nets are in a very different position now. With their 2025 first-round pick back in their possession, they are set up to tank this season. Simmons’ return might make for a worthy human interest story, but the team’s underlying mission is to develop young players who might one day be part of a contender’s core.

Sorry, but Simmons isn’t in that group. Whatever he can contribute this season in furthering that mission is gravy. Hopefully, in a pain-free way.  Just don’t be fooled a second time into expecting too much.