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“My mentality is that I’ll be back,” Simmons told Andscape from his home on Tuesday. “I’ll do everything in my power to get back, get healthy and be better than I was before. There is nothing but time and opportunity to do so. So, I’m going to attack it the way I am now. “It felt like it was hours [down] on my knee that I was waiting [after the Achilles tear], but obviously it wasn’t that long. But I feel like in that moment I had to make a decision. … ‘Are you going to come back or let this hold you down?’ “For me, it was just choosing and making that decision to keep going and fighting. I felt there is no other option. For me, it was like, ‘Let’s go.’ Surgery and start the rehab process.”
The Warriors were interested in working out Simmons in San Francisco in August, but no contract was offered, a source told Andscape. That roster spot likely went to veteran forward Georges Niang instead. Before playing the Kings in the preseason game, Kerr said he was unaware of any interest in Simmons. “I said something to Steve,” Simmons said. “I said, ‘Y’all didn’t want me?’ That was in the first quarter. And [Kerr] said, ‘I didn’t know if you were healthy.’ And I was like, ‘OK. That’s why you have people that do their job and go fly out and see.’ But it is what it is. That’s just me being competitive. It wasn’t personal.”
Draymond Green: "Ben Simmons had really had back surgery. And as someone who went through a serious back injury and was actually able to avoid surgery, I have a very, very dear close friend named Bob Myers who also went through back surgery, the same back surgery that I would have needed had I gotten the back surgery, and it ain't go so well. And then he needed another one, right? And then, you know, for someone who I know just loved getting up and down and play basketball, I then watch him not be able to run up and down the court, a basketball court for five years. You know, and and and with by the way, that same back surgery that Ben Simmons had is the surgery that did this to Bob, right? That's brutal, yeah. And then you know, and then I see people like, oh man, he don't he don't love basketball because by the way, again, I watch Bob, like Bob was in the weight room as much as any player for years, trying to just be able to run up and down the court."
Brenden Nunes: Keegan Murray said Ben Simmons injury was “probably the worst thing I’ve seen on the basketball court.” “When he did it, obviously there was a different feel in the gym…. It was a tough situation, and for me, I got to be able to step up for what he was going to bring us.”
Marc J. Spears: "On Saturday, Ben Simmons texted me with all the excitement about the E60 coming out and getting his side of the story finally out. And then, as it was about to play, he gets injured during a scrimmage, tears his Achilles. All his teammates came and gave him some love. He is going to have surgery tomorrow in New York City and he is going to do his rehab with the Kings who are supporting him from an ownership, front office, and GM standpoint. Now he is not doing it alone, at least he is with some guys. Another thing that I am sure is going to be tough is he was playing so well, maybe the best of any player on the Kings. I think Doug Christie was about to make him a captain."
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Leonard did not realize Simmons wasn't playing this year until he was asked about it, causing a spur-of-the-moment reaction. “You're saying he's not playing this year? I didn't know that, damn, that's sad,” the Raptors star said. “He has another year, he's still (young), yeah, just God Bless him, hope he stays strong and just keep grinding, if he locks in in this 2026, you can come back from an Achilles injury, so God Bless him and I hope he has a strong recovery.”
Simmons has a non-guaranteed deal for this season, with $1 million in protection if he is on the roster on opening night. But despite his season-ending Achilles tear, the Kings probably should hold off before waiving him. The reason is the salary continuation rule, which states that injured players on non-guaranteed contracts must continue to be paid until they are healthy again. (Notably, this protection does not apply to players who sign training camp contracts – also referred to as Exhibit 9 or Exhibit 10 deals, which are only protected up to $15,000. But Simmons didn't sign that type of contract.) As a result, the Kings will have a $2.45 million salary for Simmons on their books all year regardless of whether they waive him. Because of that, don't be surprised if the Kings keep him on the roster and look to use his deal in a trade. the Kings, incidentally, are $3.1 million below the tax line, enough room that they could sign another player in the meantime to fill their open 15th roster spot.
A three-time All-Star, Simmons agreed to a one-year, $3.5 million contract with the Kings on Sept. 4. Healthy at the time of the deal, the 6-foot-10, 240-pound guard impressed Kings general manager Scott Perry when he worked out for Perry in Miami and had an hourlong meeting in late August. "I've faced challenges before that tested me mentally, physically and emotionally, and I've found a way through every single one of them," Simmons wrote in a statement posted on social media. "This injury is another chapter in my journey, not the end of my story."
One of the main subjects the documentary explores is Philadelphia's heartbreaking loss to the Atlanta Hawks in Game 7 of the 2021 Eastern Conference semifinals. Simmons faced intense criticism after passing the ball instead of attempting an open dunk late in the game. The moment quickly became one of the most discussed plays of his career and intensified the pressure surrounding the young star. "How did I feel? I was like, 'What a piece of 'shit,'" Simmons said in the documentary about his head coach at the time, Doc Rivers.
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Oh No He Didn't: Ben Simmons took a shot at Daryl Morey: "I think at that point, I'm one of those people, like I'mma show you, you don't want me here? Fuck it. I ain't coming in. And that's where it came from. So it was never like I never wanted to be in Philly. Somebody had come in, obviously was trying to get me out, whatever made promises to James (Harden)...but that's just the business. There's some good guys in there and some bad guys and some people you can't trust. There's some snakes. And I think he's one of them"
Simmons added: "When you have a relationship with somebody, and they have your back, I think certain things are supposed to be handled certain ways. But then you also gotta look at it from the side of 'he's got a job.' You know, he's making his money." "He ain't trying to lose his job or anything like that. So, when times get tough, people start panicking. People throw people under the bus, and that's just, it's just what happened."
Michael Scotto: The Sacramento Kings say Ben Simmons has suffered a torn right Achilles tendon, an MRI confirmed.
