Ben Simmons comeback season has begun: “Big season is loading”

Ben Simmons was the No. 1 pick in the 2016 NBA Draft. He immediately broke a bone in his foot during his first training camp and missed the entire 2016-2017 season. Since then, fans have basically been waiting for him to return to full strength.

But hope dies last. Despite Simmons' past and reputation, every year there are rumors, anecdotes and videos that are supposed to prove that he is healthy. That he is motivated. That he will shoot three-pointers.

He was named Rookie of the Year in 2018 and was an All-Star in 2019, but then things started to go downhill despite sources claiming otherwise. Simmons suffered a pinched nerve that took him off the roster in early 2020. As the league prepared to resume the season at Disney World during the pandemic, reports began to trickle out that he was back in form.

“I was able to do Pilates almost every day, lift weights and take care of my body to get back to 100 percent,” Simmons said. “So I just tried to overdo it with that and get ready to be down there (in Orlando) and play.”

The break obviously came at a good time for him personally! Simmons played the first three games in the Disney bubble before closing it again.

In October he was back on the pitch and cut a fine figure in private training sessions with other Klutch customers.

Simmons played most of the 2020-21 season, was named to the first-team All-Defense team and finished second in voting for Defensive Player of the Year. The season ended with him missing a layup in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semifinals against the Atlanta Hawks. Sixers coach Doc Rivers didn't even know if he was a point guard.

He was back in the gym and shooting threes in practice, but then decided to transfer, missing the entire 2021-22 season while holding out and battling mental health issues.

Eventually, he was traded to the Brooklyn Nets in February 2022. This brings us to the biggest moment in the history of Ben Simmons' comeback hype. Although the Nets had signed Simmons two months earlier, they were still waiting for him to get back on the court. In April 2022, the Brooklyn Nets were preparing to face the Boston Celtics in the first round of the NBA playoffs.

Adrian Wojnarowski reported that Simmons had been able to “run and shoot pain-free for over a week” and the Nets expected Simmons to take the next step at any moment. That same day, the New York Post reported that a source told the paper that the scheduled NBA postseason was a “huge favor” to the Nets in terms of Simmons' comeback. Simmons put an exclamation point on the report by asking the assembled media to watch him dunk during practice.

Simmons would not appear in Boston's sweep of Brooklyn.

When the 2022-23 season began, the Associated Press ran an article about how healthy he was starting the season, and he told the New York Post he felt “incredible” and “great.”

“Obviously, I've always been one of those guys that's been able to get my fitness up pretty quickly, so it really hasn't been a concern for me,” Simmons told the Post. “It's about endurance just playing five-on-five and getting attacked over and over again. But overall, I feel great.”

He missed 40 games and ended the season in February.

As the 23-24 season rolled around, Andscape wrote about Simmons' recent comeback. He was “locked in” and admitted he probably shouldn't have been on the court at the start of last season. Despite being locked in and playing in seven of the team's first eight games, he missed 67 games and was suspended again in February.

Which brings us to this week, when accounts started posting things about Simmons' return based on a quote from his coach.

When you see pictures of Ben Simmons in the lab, you know basketball season is approaching. The league – and the accounts that follow it – have been officially notified.