Ben Simmons had to wait more than a year to be back on a basketball court for an official NBA game. The Australian had been on the sidelines since the 2020-21 playoffs, when the Sixers lost to the Hawks in the conference semifinals. On Wednesday, he made his debut in a Nets uniform.
The three-time All-Star, who had already appeared for Steve Nash‘s team during the preseason, was obviously not expected to display his best level after so much time off the court. Still, fans hoped to seesomething better.
Simmons managed to post only four points in 23 minutes, though the worst was that he got fouled out. Brooklyn eventually lost 108-130 to the New Orleans Pelicans, and Simmons later explained why he didn’t perform well.
Ben Simmons searches reasons for poor debut with the Brooklyn Nets
“So much going on — I think I was just too excited, honestly,” Simmons said postgame, via Fadeaway World. “But it was just great to be out there. As a first game obviously you want to win but we know the reasons we lost. It was multiple reasons we lost and those are things we can fix. We know that’s not us as a team. I think there’s a lot of jitters out there early on, but it was good to get that one out of the way.”
Considering hismonths-long absenceafter being traded in February, fans may find it hard to be patient with Simmons. However, we’re still talking about a player who hadn’t played in a long time. Only time will tell whether he can get back to his best.
Kevin Durant supports Ben Simmons
“Just keep encouraging him and keep being good teammates,” Kevin Durant said about Simmons. “He a veteran, he know we got a long season ahead of us. We got 81 more of these and there’s gonna be plenty of other games. We’re all going to have great games, it’s the nature of the job. It’s about bouncing back and coming to work tomorrow and figuring it out.“
It’s good for Simmons to have KD’s back, as he’s perhaps the most influential player in the Nets’ locker room. The season didn’t start on a good note for Brooklyn, but there’s still plenty of time to bounce back.
