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The positive momentum toward a healthy Ben Simmons carrying the Nets back to relevance lasted one game.
Simmons missed Wednesday’s matchup with the Suns at Barclays Center with a left knee contusion, a step back after a long-awaited step forward.
Simmons — who had sat for nearly three months with a nerve impingement in his lower back — looked like his old self in an impressive 18 minutes during Monday’s win over the Jazz.
But in the closing minutes, he went up to block a layup from Talen Horton-Tucker, who did not rise much for the shot. Simmons’ right leg landed atop Horton-Tucker, while his left leg landed hard and awkwardly on the floor. Simmons remained on the floor for a few moments before rising and subsequently was subbed out of a game in which the Nets were cruising.
Head coach Jacque Vaughn called Simmons “day to day.” Enough swelling justified an MRI exam, which showed no structural damage.
Simmons has a history of left knee issues and received platelet-rich plasma injections last season when the knee was bothering him.
His agent, Bernard Lee, suggested that the player and team were simply being extra careful.
“This is being done as he has a small irritated spot,” Lee wrote on Twitter, “the thought is by being cautious here with 3 days until the next game this can be put to rest and he can continue to work his way back to 10/10 game shape.”
After missing 38 straight games from early November to late January, Simmons missed one more.
In his one-game return, Simmons demonstrated how much the team needs him. The Nets played like they rarely had this season, pushing the pace and moving the ball while destroying Utah. Playing just in spurts off the bench, Simmons flirted with a triple-double (10 points on 5-of-5 shooting with 11 assists and eight rebounds).
But the reality that his return lasted 18 minutes before another setback appeared underscores the durability questions that will surround the 27-year-old until he can regularly appear on the court, if ever.
Simmons sat out the entire 2021-22 season — which included a midseason trade from Philadelphia to Brooklyn — citing mental health struggles and back issues. He underwent surgery for a herniated disc in May 2022 and debuted with the Nets the following season, which again was derailed by injuries. A nerve impingement in his back ended his campaign in mid-February.
He has played in seven games this season. Since the February 2022 trade, the Nets have played 156 regular-season games. Simmons has been available for 49, less than one-third.
Still, Vaughn expressed hope that Simmons’ body will allow him to regularly see the court, even if there is no evidence suggesting as much.
“If I ask our guys to keep hope and be resilient, then I have to be the same way, and so that’s where we are,” Vaughn said. “I thoroughly do believe that Ben will play consistent minutes for us. I have to keep that belief.
“You saw the impact that he has on our team when he plays. It was evident and clear as day. And so I do look forward to him getting through this swelling and get back on the floor for us.”
Without Simmons — who is making about $78 million total for this season and next — the Nets have sunk, entering play on the outside looking in at a play-in spot.
They entered play having lost 17 of the last 23 games, a rut that seemed escapable when Simmons returned to lead their attack.
A game later, Simmons was back on the bench.
“He changes our dynamic a lot,” Cam Thomas said Wednesday morning, before Simmons was downgraded to questionable and later declared out. “Mainly so with our offense, pushing the pace, getting out in transition. Getting us quick, easy looks. … It really helps us as a team because we get more possessions, not really playing late into the shot clock as much. But he changes the whole dynamic for sure.”
When he can play. The Nets are clinging to hope he will be able to play again — and again and again — soon.
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