Nets receive worrisome injury update on Ben Simmons
Ben Simmons made three All-Star teams within his first four seasons in the league, causing some to compare his versatility, size and passing ability to that of LeBron James and Magic Johnson. Unfortunately, injuries have derailed his career to the point where he's missed 167 out of 226 games over the last three seasons, 82 of which were with the Sixers and the last 85 with the Nets.
According to the Nets' latest injury report, Simmons has been ruled out of action for Monday's game against the Grizzlies with a nerve impingement. The Australia-born player was initially listed as questionable with leg soreness, which caused him to miss the Nets' previous three games. However, on Monday, Simmons was downgraded to out due to "a left lower back nerve impingement."
Considering that a nerve issue caused him to miss a significant time earlier in the season, it appears Simmons is set to miss a good portion of games once again. The 11th-seeded Nets (24-36) are currently two games behind the Hawks (26-34) for a chance to enter the play-in tournament. With just 22 games left in the season, Simmons may have already played his last in the 2023-24 campaign.
Last November, The New York Post's Brian Lewis reported that, per a back specialist, Simmons' never impingement can be "recurring" and "unpredictable" and that the point guard would have to deal with his surgically-repaired disc never healing completely. Simmons underwent back surgery in May 2022.
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