Brooklyn Nets coach Jacque Vaughn revealed on Friday that Ben Simmons is working through a bout of back soreness initially sustained while rehabbing the pesky knee injury which has sidelined him for the last month. Vaughn said while there is no timetable for Simmons’ return, no thought has been given -- at least to this juncture -- to shutting the guard down for the remainder of the season.
This might sound eerily familiar to the Nets and their fans. Last season, Simmons dealt with back issues while ramping up for game activity after he was acquired via trade. What was initially supposed to be a minor setback ended up costing him the rest of the season and led to postseason surgery. The new set of injury concerns don't figure to help his already bottomed-out trade value if the team wants to make an attempt at getting out from under his contract this summer.
Simmons is averaging just 6.9 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 6.1 assists per game in 42 games this season. He is still owed another $78 million over the next two seasons after signing a max contract back in 2019.
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