Ben Simmons rounding into kind, however Nets still havingahardtime

PHILADELPHIA — Just 3 years ago, the concept of Ben Simmons darting around the Wells Fargo Center court, making plays and wreaking havoc, wouldn’t haveactually been notable. But there he was Tuesday night, this time in a Brooklyn Nets consistent, standing out for doing precisely that and looking as close to his previous self as he has all season.

He was pressing the ball and pressing his previous group’s defense, diving on the flooring and to the rim. When he captured the ball in the paint he looked at the hoop. When colleagues had the ball on the boundary he cut to the basket. He was aggressive. He was bouncy. He was quick. All informed, Simmons racked up 11 points, 11 helps and 7 rebounds in 32 minutes, to go along with 3 takes and 3 obstructs. He even drainedpipes his veryfirst 2 free-throws — which he followed up with a Michael Jordan-like shrug.

Simmons looked excellent. His Nets, nevertheless, did not. Their effort was bad, particularly on defense. They permitted the Philadelphia 76ers, who were playing without James Harden, Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey, to drill half of their 32 tries from deep and grab 20 offensive rebounds. The Nets shot a burning 55% from the field — partly thanks to Simmons’ efficiency — but likewise took 19 less shots than the Sixers. Their changes on screens were lazy, their rotations sluggish, their box-outs non-existent. The result: a 115-106 Sixers win.

“It’s actually a mindset of us choosing that we’re going to play defense,” Nets head coach Jacque Vaughn informed pressreporters after the videogame. “The quantity of errors we had at halftime was complicated for this group. We had to stop the tape duetothefactthat we didn’t have enough time to program them all.”

Kevin Durant was more concise with his evaluation: “It’s the verysame s–t. Twenty more shots than us and 7 more 3-tips. That’s the videogame.”

Simmons’ play was the only intense area. Eight hundred and eighty-five days had passed giventhat he had last fit up for a videogame on the Wells Fargo Center Court. You understand the story. How, after a unusual 2020 playoff run, one where he stopped shooting the ball, which — depending on your pointofview — either contributed or led to a second-round loss to the lower-seeded Atlanta Hawks, he firmlyinsisted that he’d neverever put on a Sixers uniform onceagain. How Sixers head coach Doc Rivers and star Embiid slammed Simmons in their particular postgame press conferences, how Simmons, at times mentioning psychological health troubles, declined to signupwith the group and required a trade, how the Sixers traded him for Harden, how a back injury avoided Simmons from matching up for the Nets throughout their stretch run last season, how he came out this season looking like his profession may be headed off a cliff.

But Simmons has now appeared to turn a corner. This was the fourth-straight videogame where he looked close to his All-Star previous self. The shift started 2 weeks ago in Sacramento, where Simmons, after being benched from the beginning lineup, went for 11 points and 5 rebounds off the bench. He followed that up with a 15-point, 13-rebound, seven-assist efficiency in Portland and then a season-high 22-point output Sunday versus the Memphis Grizzlies. He looks more explosive and athletic each videogame. He firmlyinsisted throughout the season’s initially month that it was his healing from off-season back surgicaltreatment and early-season knee pain that was holding him back however that, in current weeks, he’s started sensation muchbetter, which, he states, hasactually been the driver for this turn-around. For the veryfirst time in years, he looks positive and at reduce, even upon returning to Philadelphia, a city in which he understands he’s not cherished.

“I feel like I’m in a excellent location,” Simmons stated after the loss. “I’m pleased I’m doing what I love so to be out there and have that experience was fantastic. Obviously it wasn’t the outcome we desired, specifically to lose a videogame like that, however you understand, I believe it’s a excellent action forward.”

Even throughout the lead-up to his veryfirst videogame versus his previous group, Simmons looked unwinded. He invested his earlymorning media session joking with pressreporters. When asked by Howard Eskin, one of Philadelphia’s most popular commentators and the city’s most vocal and unfaltering Simmons critic, what he keepsinmind about his time in Philadelphia, Simmons responded, “I keepinmind you heckling me a lot.” The 2 lateron postured for a selfie, which Simmons published on Instagram. When asked what he idea it would be like seeing Embiid, who Simmons has stated he hasn’t spoken with consideringthat the 2021 playoffs, Simmons responded, “We’re gonna do our trick handshake.”

But he wasn’t all jokes, and didn’t lean humor to deflect challenging concerns. When asked what he remembers about his time with Embiid, Simmons stated, “A lot of highlights, we had a lot of highlights. We had a lot of terrific times. You understand, I got a lot of love for Joe, too. Obviously it didn’t work out, however you understand, that’s life. Not whatever works in your favor.”

Simmons got a hairstyle after the group’s earlymorning practice, then a little under 5 hours lateron walked onto the flooring of the Wells Fargo Center, his veryfirst time doing so not in a Sixers’ uniform. Most of the arena’s seats were empty. The structure was peaceful. Simmons discovered a seat next to Nets head coach Jacque Vaughn. The 2 talked for 10 minutes, with Simmons, while dribbling a ball behind his legs, nodding. After warming up he signed autographs for fans.

Simmons was booed throughout the night, however the response was more controlled than when he returned last March with the Nets however didn’t play. “I idea it was going to be louder,” Simmons stated after the videogame. Maybe if Embiid had played the feelings on the flooring would haveactually been various, and selected up on by the crowd, however for the minute the Sixers and their fans, have other issues. When will Embiid return? When will Harden? Will the 2 be able to discover chemistry?

The Nets discover themselves in a comparable location. Simmons may be back to his previous self, however the group doesn’t appear to be any closer to satisfying its preseason expectations. Losing to a Sixers group missingouton its 3 finest gamers is untenable. Vaughn, who took over for Steve Nash less than one month ago, is currently calling out his gamers’ effort.

“We’ll play the men who desire to play tough,” he stated after the loss, which dropped the Nets to 8-10.

Simmons, as he stated, does appear to be in a great location. That’s the great news for the Nets. What needto scare them is that their defects stay the exactsame and the losses are still there even with Simmons finding his videogame.

Yaron Weitzman is an NBA author for FOX Sports and the author of Tanking to the Top: The Philadelphia 76ers and the Most Audacious Process in the History of Professional Sports. Follow him on Twitter @YaronWeitzman.