SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Ben Simmons is a piece in progress after he missed all of last season with mental health woes and a foul back. He has been working around all the surface noise while he shapes up for the Nets on the court — or at the least tries to.
After a herniated L-4 disk forced Simmons to have a microdiscectomy procedure in May, he has been robbed of much of his old explosiveness — at the least up to now this season. Simmons has vowed that neither that nor the mental health issues he has handled will rob him of his love of the sport, even when he’s not enamored with a few of the things that include it.
“I like the sport. I like the sport. Do I like all of the bulls–t around it? No,” Simmons said at morning shootaround before the Nets faced the Kings on Tuesday night. “But I like the sport and it comes with it.
“A variety of things include being on this position. … But it surely is what it’s. I like playing basketball and I like to work. Not daily goes to be perfect. Everyone has down days. But that’s life. Day-to-day pushing through and convalescing.”
Discuss with Simmons for greater than three or 4 minutes and likelihood is that phrase will come up: Taking things daily, each on the court and on the earth.
The 26-year-old, three-time All-Star who was acquired last season from the 76ers within the deal that sent James Harden to Philadelphia, has been relegated to coming off the Nets’ bench. Simmons’ return to form hasn’t been a linear climb, but more stop-and-start.
“It’s a roller coaster. You have got good days. You have got bad days,” Simmons said. “But it surely’s life, too. So that you’ve just got to persist with it.”
Staying in a superb headspace is unquestionably harder if Simmons goes down the rabbit hole of social media, where he is usually excoriated, not only by Philadelphians, but even by Nets fans who feel he wasn’t value the associated fee of Harden.
“Yeah, I don’t think you may fully shut it out,” Simmons said. “It’s one in all those things where you’re taking certain things, certain information.
“But at the identical time, I do know who I’m going to take heed to and confer with. After which on top of that, it’s daily: Everyone’s going to have certain expectations of me. Obviously mine are probably higher than everyone else’s, which they needs to be. But I understand it’s going take time to get back to where I used to be. And I’m OK with that.”
Simmons —who leans heavily on his inner circle of his brother and father — entered Tuesday averaging just 5.2 points, 6.2 rebounds and 5.9 assists, all career-lows. He was a team-worst minus-43, and his minus-4.8 per game was 410th out of 455 players, per NBA.com.
Because each Simmons and center Nic Claxton are non-shooters, coach Jacque Vaughn has opted to separate them. He has began Claxton and made Simmons his backup ever since Vaughn replaced the fired Steve Nash and Simmons returned from a four-game absence as a consequence of a swollen knee.
“He’s still doing somewhat little bit of every little thing,” Vaughn said. “You see that [second] group that we have now him on the market with hopefully we’re capable of capitalize on him getting the rebound, pushing the basketball and having three or 4 shooters around him, so we create pace and a few movement with him.
“He’s still getting used to twiddling with that group. He often finishes the quarter with the primary group, so he’s attempting to hedge and feel that team as well. So attempting to put him able where he can do well.”
The Nets need him to do well. Or at the least to do higher.
Simmons, who missed the loss to the Lakers on Sunday with that knee issue, is within the third season of a five-year, $177 million contract. Suspended Kyrie Irving will likely be a free agent after this season and Kevin Durant has already requested a trade once, so Simmons could possibly be here longer than either. The Nets are tearing him down and remolding him as a backup center.
“We’re just attempting to figure it out now, positioning, defensively too. I’m having fun with it. It’s a latest opportunity so I’m looking forward to it,” Simmons said. “[It’s] every little thing, literally. We’re ranging from the bottom up. … It’s a variety of various things to learn offensively and defensively. So I’m taking it daily.”
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Ben Simmons is a piece in progress after he missed all of last season with mental health woes and a foul back. He has been working around all the surface noise while he shapes up for the Nets on the court — or at the least tries to.
After a herniated L-4 disk forced Simmons to have a microdiscectomy procedure in May, he has been robbed of much of his old explosiveness — at the least up to now this season. Simmons has vowed that neither that nor the mental health issues he has handled will rob him of his love of the sport, even when he’s not enamored with a few of the things that include it.
“I like the sport. I like the sport. Do I like all of the bulls–t around it? No,” Simmons said at morning shootaround before the Nets faced the Kings on Tuesday night. “But I like the sport and it comes with it.
“A variety of things include being on this position. … But it surely is what it’s. I like playing basketball and I like to work. Not daily goes to be perfect. Everyone has down days. But that’s life. Day-to-day pushing through and convalescing.”
Discuss with Simmons for greater than three or 4 minutes and likelihood is that phrase will come up: Taking things daily, each on the court and on the earth.
The 26-year-old, three-time All-Star who was acquired last season from the 76ers within the deal that sent James Harden to Philadelphia, has been relegated to coming off the Nets’ bench. Simmons’ return to form hasn’t been a linear climb, but more stop-and-start.
“It’s a roller coaster. You have got good days. You have got bad days,” Simmons said. “But it surely’s life, too. So that you’ve just got to persist with it.”
Staying in a superb headspace is unquestionably harder if Simmons goes down the rabbit hole of social media, where he is usually excoriated, not only by Philadelphians, but even by Nets fans who feel he wasn’t value the associated fee of Harden.
“Yeah, I don’t think you may fully shut it out,” Simmons said. “It’s one in all those things where you’re taking certain things, certain information.
“But at the identical time, I do know who I’m going to take heed to and confer with. After which on top of that, it’s daily: Everyone’s going to have certain expectations of me. Obviously mine are probably higher than everyone else’s, which they needs to be. But I understand it’s going take time to get back to where I used to be. And I’m OK with that.”
Simmons —who leans heavily on his inner circle of his brother and father — entered Tuesday averaging just 5.2 points, 6.2 rebounds and 5.9 assists, all career-lows. He was a team-worst minus-43, and his minus-4.8 per game was 410th out of 455 players, per NBA.com.
Because each Simmons and center Nic Claxton are non-shooters, coach Jacque Vaughn has opted to separate them. He has began Claxton and made Simmons his backup ever since Vaughn replaced the fired Steve Nash and Simmons returned from a four-game absence as a consequence of a swollen knee.
“He’s still doing somewhat little bit of every little thing,” Vaughn said. “You see that [second] group that we have now him on the market with hopefully we’re capable of capitalize on him getting the rebound, pushing the basketball and having three or 4 shooters around him, so we create pace and a few movement with him.
“He’s still getting used to twiddling with that group. He often finishes the quarter with the primary group, so he’s attempting to hedge and feel that team as well. So attempting to put him able where he can do well.”
The Nets need him to do well. Or at the least to do higher.
Simmons, who missed the loss to the Lakers on Sunday with that knee issue, is within the third season of a five-year, $177 million contract. Suspended Kyrie Irving will likely be a free agent after this season and Kevin Durant has already requested a trade once, so Simmons could possibly be here longer than either. The Nets are tearing him down and remolding him as a backup center.
“We’re just attempting to figure it out now, positioning, defensively too. I’m having fun with it. It’s a latest opportunity so I’m looking forward to it,” Simmons said. “[It’s] every little thing, literally. We’re ranging from the bottom up. … It’s a variety of various things to learn offensively and defensively. So I’m taking it daily.”
