Brooklyn Nets’ Ben Simmons (10) drives past Philadelphia 76ers’ Paul Reed (44) during the second half of a preseason NBA basketball game Monday, Oct. 16, 2023, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)
NEW YORK (AP) — The scouting report sounded strikingly similar to the one that described Ben Simmons when he was an All-Star in Philadelphia, not a backup with the Brooklyn Nets.
“I’m still fast, I can still jump high, I’m still strong,” Simmons said.
Not last season.
Not when he was so ineffective in his return from back surgery that Simmons couldn’t even protest much when he was bounced first from his normal position, then eventually from Nets coach Jacque Vaughn’s rotation entirely.
“It’s hard for a coach to really trust and believe in you when he’s not seeing it, right?” Simmons said. “And I’m not able to physically do it and he can’t see it, then as a coach, I would do the same thing: ‘Well, I’m not going to play you if you’re not able to compete and do the things I know you can do.’”
Simmons’ relationship with Vaughn has healed and it appears his body has, too.
Reinstalled as the point guard, Simmons was moving quickly and decisively again in the preseason after playing just 42 games the last two seasons. It gives the Nets hope that, no longer with Kevin Durant or Kyrie Irving, at least they now have the old Ben Simmons.
“He looks in shape, he looks confident and pretty aggressive, and it looks like they’ve got a package of stuff in for him,” 76ers coach Nick Nurse said.
That was apparent right away in the Nets’ exhibition schedule when Simmons powered past LeBron James on a drive into the lane for a basket early in their opening game against the Lakers in Las Vegas.
If Simmons can keep it up when the games count, Brooklyn will have a player like few others in the NBA, a 6-foot-10 point guard who is quick enough to blow by most players on offense and strong enough to guard any position on…
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