Watch: Ja Morant expertly goaded Ben Simmons into fouling out...again

Ben Simmons hasn't necessarily had the start to his Brooklyn Nets career that the franchise was hoping for when they traded away James Harden last winter for a package that included Simmons, Seth Curry and Andre Drummond.

Simmons was supposed to be the highlight of that package returning to Brooklyn, but he didn't play at all in the second half of last season as he rehabbed from an injury as well as some mental health issues that had plagued him.

There was some hope heading into this season that all the time away from the game plus some fresh legs would lead to rejuvenation for Simmons, but so far that hasn't been the case.

At this point, he may never be the All-Star player he was at the beginning of his career, and he'll certainly have a hard time living up to his status as a No. 1 overall pick.  

Perhaps all the Nets can hope for is this juncture is for Simmons to become a functioning part of the starting rotation, but even that looks tough right now. Through Brooklyn's first three games, Simmons has totaled just 17 points. In the meantime, he's also totaled 14 fouls against him, and he's now fouled out twice.

His latest foul out was courtesy of Ja Morant of the Memphis Grizzlies, who expertly goaded Simmons into a foul with time running down in the fourth quarter.