Ben Simmons’ rookie year status is up in the air due to a Jones fracture in his right foot, but his coach seems confident that Simmons will be available for at least the latter half of the 2016-17 season.
Philadelphia 76ers head coach Brett Brown said on Friday that he expects the No. 1 overall pick to be back in action come January, per Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Simmons, 20, suffered the fracture during a team scrimmage in late September and underwent surgery earlier this month. There is currently no official timetable for his return to the court.
The Sixers will likely be miles away from playoff contention this season, meaning that there’s little reason to rush Simmons back. But it would obviously stand to benefit the LSU product and his overall development as a player if he was healthy enough to get in some quality game-action reps at some point over the course of his rookie campaign.
