Ben Simmons Will Make His Return Tonight Against the Mavericks

Ben Simmons was involved in a blockbuster trade to the Nets for James Harden back in February of this year. However, he was held out because of a back injury and dealing with his mental health. The beginning of this season seemed to be promising for Simmons though who played and started in the first six games. Unfortunately, there was a setback with some knee swelling that forced him to miss four in a row. The good news is that he was upgraded as questionable and now it is confirmed that Simmons will make his return tonight against the Mavericks.

Ben Simmons says he “feels great” and will play vs. Mavs tonight. He thinks he will be limited to about 20 minutes.

— Tim MacMahon (@espn_macmahon) November 7, 2022

The Nets organization has recently gone through a lot of turmoil. First, it was the firing of Head Coach Steve Nash, which was allegedly a mutual parting. In their search for a new coach, they were somehow linked to Ime Udoka, the suspended Boston Celtics coach. That brought negative attention to the team. What made matters worse was dealing with Kyrie Irving and his issues off the court, which led to his suspension. 

The last thing the Nets needed was to have another star not playing. Simmons has dealt with injuries in the past. In his first season in the league, he was sidelined for the whole year due to a foot injury. He made a full recovery and became a special talent for the 76ers. After a falling out in Philadelphia, the Nets made a trade for him for a disgruntled Harden who did not have a consistent roster around him with star players Kevin Durant and Irving missing significant time. 

Despite all the unwanted attention, the Nets have won three of their last four games without Simmons. With the return, the hope is that they can keep winning and take the distraction away from the ongoing issues off the court. Brooklyn will play in Dallas tonight and will have their hands full with a scorching hot Luka Doncic, who Simmons might match up against.

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