“Baseball is 90 percent mental. The other half is physical” — Yogi Berra
It’s hard to say how much of basketball is mental, but it wasn’t just a bad back that kept Ben Simmons off the floor last season but mental health woes as well.
The Nets star claims he has put both behind him and is ready to finally make his long-delayed debut with the team.
“Physically, I feel great,” Simmons said at Monday’s media day, adding he is fully cleared and should be ready to play in the Nets’ first few games. “That’s the goal, that’s the plan. … Ready to go.”
Simmons, who was the Nets’ centerpiece return in the James Harden trade with the 76ers in February, hasn’t played since June 20, 2021. That was Game 7 of Philadelphia’s second-round loss to Atlanta, in which he passed up an open dunk and was publicly ripped by then-teammate Joel Embiid.
After sitting out — citing mental health issues — the Nets acquired him at the trade deadline. Simmons didn’t play the rest of last season, eventually requiring back surgery for a herniated disk. Now, he’s not only fully cleared medically but in the right headspace to compete.
“I’ve put myself in position. I’ve been working on myself this past year to get back on the floor and play at a high level,” Simmons said. “I deserve to take this opportunity to get back on the court, so I’m excited to team up with these guys, these coaches.”
These guys will be led by Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving. The latter — who shares the same high school coach as Simmons — said the Nets will protect the newcomer but added he won’t need it.
“He’s a big boy, he can handle it. He doesn’t shy away from the moment, and I like that,” Irving said. “I’ve seen it since he was in high school. We’ve had a connection playing for the same high school coach with Kevin Boyle. So we know what it’s like to be yelled [at], get mother-effed all the time, the championships, being held accountable to the higher level. And that’s the best environment to be in.”
When Simmons was asked what made him confident he can maintain good headspace all season, he replied, “I put a lot of time and effort into myself. … A lot of time and energy was spent on getting myself to a place where I want to play.
“I feel everybody has dark days, but we’re able to address it and work toward getting it to the place where we need to be. That’s where I am.”
Simmons made his annual claim that he’ll take more 3s, the glaring hole in his game. That remains to be seen, but his defense is unquestioned as is his ability to creating 3-point looks for others — such as Durant, Irving, Joe Harris and Seth Curry. His former 76ers teammate Curry added he tried to get the team to use Simmons at center more often, something the Nets will do.
Curry and T.J. Warren are not yet cleared for practice, but Harris is. All three are coming off surgeries.