After being criticized for supposedly lacking the desire to play basketball, Ben Simmons may now be lacking the desire to play basketball.
The former NBA All-Star forward Simmons is questioning whether he wants to continue playing in the NBA next season, Stefan Bondy of the New York Post reported Wednesday. The news comes as Simmons remains unsigned as an unrestricted free agent after over two months now of being available.
Bondy notes that Simmons has generated interest from multiple NBA teams this offseason. However, it seems that Simmons may decline those overtures in order to simply call it quits.
Still only 29 years old, Simmons was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2016 NBA Draft. He was a three-time All-Star and a two-time All-Defensive selection early on in his pro career.
But Simmons’ reputation has cratered in recent years because of perceived attitude issues, a lack of availability due to injuries, and his seeming disinterest in improving his game (namely by developing a jump shot). While Simmons has dealt with some legitimate back issues, even undergoing back surgery in 2022, he has only played in 108 of a possible 328 games (32.9 percent) over the last four NBA seasons. On top of that, Simmons’ work ethic and commitment to the game have already been questioned before (dating back to his time with Philadelphia).
Last season, Simmons averaged 5.0 points. 4.7 rebounds, and 5.6 assists per game combined between the Brooklyn Nets and the LA Clippers. There have been some interesting NBA teams linked to Simmons in recent weeks, but the former Rookie of the Year’s reported salary demands appear to be a non-starter. Now it looks like Simmons, who has already earned more than $203 million in salary over his career, may just decide at this point to throw in the towel on his days as an NBA basketball player.
