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Ben SImmons
AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson
Brooklyn Nets guard Ben Simmons is reportedly 100% healthy to start the 2023-24 NBA season. Now he can focus on proving that he belongs as a fixture of the franchise.
Recovering from a season-ending back injury, Simmons only played in 42 games, averaging 6.9 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 6.1 steals last year. With not a lot of playing time and lingering injuries, it showed how Simmons didn’t perform at his maximum level prior to his past three All-Star seasons.
Now that he is deemed to be “100% healthy,” per SNY’s Ian Begley, the 2023-24 season would make it his make-or-break year. Simmons is entering his eighth season and not getting any younger, so this will be his season to show the Nets that he can still be a star player on the floor.
Simmons’ role for the Nets in 2023-24 is to be the starting point guard and to be the primary ball handler. With his size and frame, he can use it to score in various ways by posting up and driving to the paint. As for shooting, Simmons has been known for not taking shots from three-point territory and not being efficient, either. During the 2022-23 season, Simmons attempted zero shots from three-point range. If he improves and develops a three-point shot this offseason — a hypothetical that has been floated out there every summer since he was taken No. 1 overall in 2016 — he can open up his scoring capabilities beyond the mid-range and paint.
For more on the Nets and Ben Simmons, visit AMNY.com
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