Ben Simmons is back in the NBA.
After sitting out the 2025-26 season, the former Brooklyn Nets guard has signed a one-year, $3.5 million deal with the Sacramento Kings, ESPN’s Shams Charania reported Friday. The move gives Simmons a clear path back onto an NBA floor after a year away, during which he had reportedly been searching for the right fit rather than rushing into his next stop.
Charania reported that Simmons spent Monday in Sacramento visiting the Kings, where he went through extensive medical testing, an on-court workout and meetings with coach Doug Christie and other staffers. He also worked out for general manager Scott Perry in late August and met with Perry for an hour. According to Charania, both the Kings and Team Australia officials - with Simmons taking part in a players-only minicamp last month - came away feeling that the 30-year-old looked and felt strong health-wise.
Simmons arrives with a career résumé that still reflects the high-end play that once made him such a fascinating piece. In 383 games, he has averaged 13.1 points, 7.4 rebounds and 7.2 assists while shooting 55.8% from the field and 59.2% from the free-throw line.
His Brooklyn stint, though, never matched the original vision. Over four seasons with the Nets, Simmons averaged 6.5 points, 6.2 rebounds and 6.3 assists per game, hitting 56.2% of his shots and 50.0% from the line.
While he was away from the league last season, Simmons kept busy elsewhere. He became the controlling owner of the South Florida Sails of the Sport Fishing Championship, adding another passion to a life that has already stretched beyond basketball. Still, the headline here is simple: after a long pause and plenty of uncertainty, Simmons is back in the NBA with Sacramento.
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Demin also used the appearance to reflect on his rookie season, including a memorable night against Luka Doncic, while Porter looked back on his first season in Brooklyn after arriving in a trade from the Denver Nuggets. For a team still building chemistry, it was the kind of casual media stop that says as much about the roster's personality as any serious postgame answer, even if the bigger basketball questions around this group are still waiting to be answered. [Read more 🡒]