Anfernee Simons is not the biggest name in 2026 free agency, but he is one of the more interesting ones because his market is kind of weird.
He is 27 years old, he can shoot, he can play on and off the ball, and he already has real scoring seasons on his resume. At the same time, he is not a star, he is not a great defender, and his value took a hit after a season where he moved from the Celtics to the Bulls and didn’t really get a full runway with either team.
Simons averaged 14.3 points, 2.5 rebounds, and 2.4 assists in 2025-26 while shooting 44.0% from the field, 38.5% from three, and 89.6% from the line. Those numbers are not crazy, but they are still useful. Guards who can make almost 39.0% of their threes, shoot off movement, attack a closeout, and run second-unit offense always get paid.
The problem is the money. Simons just finished a 4-year, $100.0 million deal, so he is coming from a $25.0 million average salary. That type of contract probably isn’t there again right now. The 2026 market is tight. Only a few teams have real cap space, and most playoff teams are working with the non-taxpayer mid-level exception of around $15.0 million.
That means Simons has two choices. He can chase the biggest offer from a team with space, or he can take a smaller number to play on a better team with a clearer winning role. I think the second path makes more sense, but free agency is never only about basketball.
Here are five realistic landing spots for Simons, ranked by fit, money, role, and actual reported noise.
5. Chicago Bulls
This is the boring one, but it has to be on the list. The Bulls already had Simons after the deadline, and they got a look at him inside their own building. It wasn’t a long audition, but it was enough to know what he is. He is a scoring guard who can shoot, play fast, and give them another player who doesn’t need a play drawn perfectly to get a decent look.
The Bulls went 31-51 and finished 12th in the East, so this is not a team that should be acting like one signing fixes everything. Their defense was bad, their roster had too many guards, and their direction still felt stuck between rebuilding and trying to be decent. That is exactly why Simons is tricky for them.
On talent, he fits. On roster logic, it is not so simple.
Josh Giddey led the Bulls with 17.0 points and 9.1 assists per game. That tells you how much they already leaned on him as the main organizer. If they keep building around Giddey, they need shooting next to him. Simons gives them that. Giddey can pass over the defense, Simons can space the floor, and the Bulls can play with more speed.
The issue is defense. A Giddey-Simons backcourt is big enough in some ways, but not strong defensively. Simons can get targeted. Giddey has improved, but he is not the type of guard who hides Simons from the hardest matchups every night. If the Bulls also keep other offense-first guards, the whole thing can become too easy to attack.
Still, the money path is real. The Bulls are one of the few teams projected with cap space, and they also have familiarity. If Simons wants more than the mid-level exception, this could be one of the cleanest ways to get it. Something like two years in the $32.0 million to $38.0 million range would not be shocking.
I just don’t love it for Simons. He already spent part of the season there, the Bulls were not good, and there is not a clear reason to believe this is the place where he rebuilds his full market value. He would get shots, but would those shots matter? That is the problem.
This is realistic, but it feels more like the fallback option than the best one.
4. Los Angeles Lakers
The Lakers are always going to be connected to guards who can shoot because that roster needs spacing every single year. It doesn’t matter who is there. It was true with LeBron James. It is true with Luka Doncic. It is true with Austin Reaves. The Lakers always need more shooting.
The Lakers went 53-29 and finished 4th in the West. They had a great season, but the playoff loss to the Thunder showed the same thing that usually shows up against elite teams: they need more two-way depth, more speed, and more shooting that defenses actually respect.
Simons is not a perfect answer, but he is a real offensive answer. He shot 38.5% from three this season and 89.6% at the line. Those two numbers usually travel. He can stand next to Luka and wait for kickouts, but he can also run bench units when Luka sits. That matters because the Lakers can’t play the whole season with Luka creating everything.
The fit with Austin Reaves is where it gets complicated. Reaves is a free agent, too, and the Lakers want him back. Reaves had a huge season and was already a real secondary creator. If he returns, the Lakers would already have Luka and Reaves as their two main ball-handlers. Add Simons, and the guard group has a lot of offense, but not enough defense.
That is why Simons can only be a Lakers target in a specific type of offseason. If LeBron leaves or takes a cheaper deal, if Luke Kennard doesn’t return, or if the Lakers choose shooting over size with part of their cap room, then Simons becomes interesting. If the Lakers bring back LeBron, Reaves, Kennard, and Rui Hachimura, then there probably isn’t enough money or role for Simons.
The basketball fit is easy in one area. Luka creates so many clean corner and wing threes that Simons would get good looks without overdribbling. He would not have to be a No. 2 option. He could be a 15-point bench scorer or a closing shooter when the Lakers need offense.
The playoff problem is also obvious. A Luka-Reaves-Simons group can get punished. The Lakers would need Marcus Smart, Jarred Vanderbilt, or another defensive wing next to them to balance it. Against Thunder, Spurs, Rockets, or Wolves-level athleticism, that lineup could be in trouble.
Still, this is a realistic landing spot because the Lakers have money paths and need shooting. It just feels like a second or third priority. If Simons is willing to take a short deal and reset his value on a team with Luka, this could work. But I don’t think the Lakers should be his first call unless the bigger roster moves create the space for him.
3. Orlando Magic
This one is my favorite basketball fit, even if the money part is harder.
The Magic went 45-37 and finished 8th in the East. That is solid, but it also shows they are not a true contender yet. They have Paolo Banchero, Franz Wagner, Jalen Suggs, and Desmond Bane. That is a strong core. It is big, physical, and hard to guard when everyone is healthy. But the half-court offense still needs more guard scoring and more shooting.
Banchero averaged 22.2 points, 8.4 rebounds, and 5.2 assists. Wagner averaged 20.6 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 3.3 assists. Those are big numbers from two forwards, and both can create offense. But in the playoffs, it is different. Teams load up on big forwards. They sit in gaps. They dare the other guards to beat them. That is where Simons could matter.
Simons is not just a spot-up guy. That is why the Magic should care. He can shoot off the catch, but he can also come off a screen, take two dribbles, and get into a pull-up three. He can run empty-side pick-and-rolls. He can punish second units. For a team that sometimes gets heavy and slow, that type of guard is valuable.
The Magic don’t need Simons to be their main guy. That is the best part. In Portland, he had to carry too much. With the Celtics, he had to fit into a system that needed defense and role discipline. With the Bulls, the season was already messy. On the Magic, the job would be simple: score, shoot, attack weak defenders, and don’t kill them on defense.
The defense part is where the Magic can protect him better than most teams. Suggs can take hard guard matchups. Banchero and Wagner have size. Bane is strong. The Magic have more defensive cover than the Lakers or Bulls. Simons would still be a target at times, but he wouldn’t be alone.
The problem is contract structure. The Magic probably need the mid-level exception or a sign-and-trade type of path unless they move salary. That makes this harder if the Nets or Bulls offer more. But if Simons wants a real role on a team that is already trying to win now, the Magic should be very high on his list.
I also think the Magic need a player exactly like this more than they may want to admit. Banchero and Wagner are good enough to win playoff games, but they need more easy shooting around them. Simons is not perfect, but he gives them the one thing that always matters in the postseason: a closer that can win games in isolation scoring.
This would be a strong signing if the money is in the $15.0 million range. If it gets closer to $20.0 million, the Magic probably need to think harder. But as a pure fit, it is very good.
2. Brooklyn Nets
The Nets are the “get your bag” team. That is the whole thing here. They went 20-62 and finished 13th in the East. They still need scoring, shooting, ball-handling, and normal NBA offense. Simons can give them all of that right away.
This is not the best winning situation for him, but it might be the best contract situation. The Nets are one of the few teams with real cap space, and they have many long-term guards who still need a veteran to pave the way. If they want to add an actual NBA scorer without giving up picks in a trade, Simons is one of the easier options.
The basketball fit is not hard. The Nets were a bad offensive team, and they had a young roster that needed structure. Simons gives them a guard who can average 17 or 18 points if he gets starter minutes again. We already saw bigger scoring from him in Portland. His 2025-26 numbers were down because of role and team movement, not because he forgot how to score.
If the Nets sign him, they can use him in two ways. They can let him start and give their younger players more space, or they can use him as a high-minute sixth man who closes when he is hot. Either way, he makes the team more mature. That sounds basic, but for a 20-win roster, basic matters.
The risk is that the Nets overpay for the wrong stage of their timeline. Simons is 27. That is not old, but he is not a rookie-contract player either. If the Nets give him three or four years at starter money, they need to know he is part of the next good version of the roster. If not, they are just using cap space to become a 28-win team instead of a 20-win team.
That is why I would only like this if the contract is smart. A two-year deal with a team option would make sense. A front-loaded contract could make sense. Something like two years, $40.0 million to $46.0 million would be fine if the second year has flexibility. A four-year deal would scare me.
For Simons, the Nets are very simple. He can get money, shots, and freedom. He can also rebuild his value after a strange season. If he averages 20.0 points and shoots 39.0% from three, people will talk about him differently again.
But the downside is big. Losing a lot does nothing for his reputation. If the Nets stay near the bottom of the East, Simons could again get labeled as a scorer whose stats don’t move winning. That may not be fair, but that is how NBA talk works.
The Nets are ranked this high because of money and role, not because of winning. If Simons wants the biggest check, they may be the favorite. If he wants the best basketball situation, they shouldn’t be.
1. Golden State Warriors
This is the best realistic landing spot because there is actual reported smoke, and the fit makes sense.
Brett Siegel reported that the Warriors have Anfernee Simons and Collin Sexton as early free-agent targets with the mid-level exception. This is not just a random “he can shoot, they need shooting” idea. There is already noise attached to it.
The Warriors went 37-45 and finished 10th in the West. That is bad for their standard. Stephen Curry still averaged 26.6 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 4.7 assists. Jimmy Butler averaged 20.0 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 4.9 assists before his season got cut short. The top-end talent was still there, but the roster around Curry looked too old, too thin, and too dependent on him making impossible shots.
The Warriors need another guard who can create offense without Curry. They have been chasing some version of that role since Jordan Poole left. They tried different options. Some were too old. Some were too limited. Some couldn’t shoot enough. Simons is not Poole, but the role would look similar: come in, push pace, shoot deep threes, run second units, and close some games when the offense needs more juice.
The best part is that Simons can play next to Curry. He is not a pure point guard who needs the ball every possession. He can come off pindowns, lift from the corner, relocate, and punish teams for trapping Curry. If defenses put two on Curry, Simons is good enough to make them pay. That is exactly the type of player the Warriors need.
The defense is the issue. It is always the issue with Simons. A Curry-Simons backcourt is small. It puts more pressure on Draymond Green, Butler, and every wing on the roster. In the playoffs, bigger guards can hunt that matchup. That is real.
But I think the Warriors can live with it because their offense needs help more than their reputation wants to admit. Curry is 38. Butler is 36. Draymond is not a scorer. If the Warriors keep pretending they can win with defense, motion, and no extra creation, they are lying to themselves. They need another real bucket-getter.
The money is the question. The Warriors probably can’t offer the biggest contract unless something else changes. If Simons gets a $20.0 million-plus offer from the Nets or Bulls, the Warriors may lose. But if his market settles near the $15.0 million MLE, this is the spot.
For Simons, it is also the best career reset. He gets to play with Curry. He gets clean looks. He gets national games. He gets a defined role on a team that still wants to win now. If he plays well there, his image changes fast. He goes from “good scorer on bad teams” to “dangerous playoff guard next to Curry.”
This should be the No. 1 landing spot. It has the rumor, the need, the role, and the basketball logic. The only thing missing is the money. If Simons accepts the mid-level exception, the Warriors should be very aggressive.
