Ben Simmons has had a rough start to the season with the Brooklyn Nets, often looking indecisive on the court. Part of this was obviously to be expected, as he is returning from a back injury and missing an entire season. Currently, Ben Simmons is averaging 6.2 RPG, 6.5 APG, and 7.3 APG for the Nets.
Aside from his actual play on the court, Ben Simmons has also had some availability issues, missing the Nets’ last two games. Recently, it was reported by Adrian Wojnarowski that the combination of him not playing for the Nets and not being an impactful player currently has frustrated Kevin Durant and “others on the Nets” thus far.
https://twitter.com/_Talkin_NBA/status/1588612226285723648
“Ben Simmons has been a source of frustration for Kevin Durant for others on the Nets so far, because he has been unable to stay on the floor with a knee injury but prior to that, he has shown that he’s a long way away from being back to an impactful player. It’s a big part of the reason why the Nets are at the very bottom of the league defensively. None of this really works. This team was built and reconstructed around the idea that Ben Simmons would have to play a really significant role for this team especially on the defensive end, especially rebounding the basketball and certainly facilitating on offense. There’s no indication right now that Ben Simmons is close to being back to anywhere near the player he once was”.
It remains to be seen how Ben Simmons does going forward. It is easy to see why his play has been frustrating to Kevin Durant and others, and hopefully, he is able to bounce back and do better in the future.
The Brooklyn Nets Have Struggled Thus Far
For a number of reasons, the Brooklyn Nets have had a rough start to the season. They have already fired coach Steve Nash, and we’ll see how well they do under their next coach.
Obviously, a big part of the drama around the Nets in recent memory has been around Kyrie Irving, but even before that, Kevin Durant requested a trade during the offseason. This version of the Brooklyn Nets has been known for the instability surrounding it.
Hopefully, we will see the Brooklyn Nets figure things out, as they are clearly a team that has talent on the roster. However, as of right now, it’s hard to say that it will happen in the near future.
