Former All-NBA guard/forward Ben Simmons is set to take part in a player-run mini-camp for Australia’s national team beginning Monday, and he’ll do it with “zero restrictions,” Marc J. Spears reports for Andscape.
Spears also says Simmons is covering the cost himself. According to a trainer who recently worked out with him, Simmons showed the kind of athleticism that once made him such a unique force after spending last year away from the game to fully recover from the injuries that had slowed him in recent seasons.
Simmons last appeared in the NBA during the 2024/25 season, splitting that year between the Nets and the Clippers. In 51 games, he put up 5.0 points, 5.6 assists and 4.7 rebounds per night. He shot a career-low 52.0% from the field, but also connected on a career-best 72.7% of his free throws.
There are signs a return to the league is more than just a possibility. Spears reports that multiple teams have shown interest in Simmons, and one Western Conference club has already extended a training camp invitation.
Simmons, meanwhile, would be willing to sign for the veteran’s minimum, and Spears adds that he hopes to represent Australia at the 2028 Olympics.
The basketball community also spent Sunday honoring Don Nelson, who died at 86. Damon Sayles of The Athletic wrote that the reaction from across the sport was wide-ranging, with players and coaches past and present paying tribute to the Hall of Famer.
Among the most heartfelt messages came from Dirk Nowitzki, who wrote: “You didn’t just draft me. You believed in me,” Nowitzki wrote (Twitter link).
“You saw things in my game before I ever realized I could do them. I’ve said it a million times and I will always say it: I don’t think my career could have turned out how it did without you being my first coach and giving me the freedom to play my game.
I can only say THANK YOU. For everything.”
The Warriors, where Nelson spent 11 years, released a statement as well. Stephen Curry also paid tribute, saying Nelson was “one of the big reasons [he] was drafted by the Warriors.”
“Don Nelson was one of the most innovative and influential coaches in the history of the NBA and an iconic figure in Warriors history,” the team said, per the Associated Press. “During two memorable stints as head coach, ‘Nellie’ left an indelible mark on our franchise with his approach to the game.”
Elsewhere, Patrick Beverley is in talks with French club Boulazac, according to Eurohoops. Beverley played last season with PAOK in Greece, where he averaged 9.3 points and 3.3 assists in FIBA Euro Cup action and helped the team reach the finals.
And in France, ASVEL is in the middle of a major restructuring after its funding came in at less than half of what had originally been projected because of problems with a patron. Johnny Askounis of Eurohoops reports that Tony Parker has been asked to help with negotiations, which are expected to wrap up by the end of 2026.
In Other News...
Warriors Could Be Putting Huge Pressure On Jimmy Butlers Return
The Warriors are heading into next season with a familiar kind of uncertainty, and this one centers on Jimmy Butlers absence. Golden State expects to spend the early months without him, and the timing raises an obvious question about how stable the team can be before Butler is back in the lineup. The comparison to Klay Thompsons return is a useful one, but it also underscores how different the context is now than it was then.
When Thompson came back, the Warriors were in a far better place to absorb the wait and ease him in. This time, the pressure cuts the other way, with Golden State needing to survive the opening stretch in a rugged Western Conference and keep itself afloat long enough for Butler to matter. If the team is struggling by the time he returns, the margin for error shrinks fast, and Butler may be asked to make an immediate impact the moment he steps on the floor. [Read more 🡒]
Warriors Still Have A Forward Problem As Free Agency Picture Shifts
The Warriors search for another frontcourt piece has not exactly gotten cleaner as free agency settles into its next phase. San Antonio added a little intrigue by sharing footage that appeared to show Kelly Olynyk training with the Spurs in France, while NBA insider Jake Fischer said Golden State could still wind up looking at Olynyk or Georges Niang as it tries to patch a forward spot that remains unsettled.
Niang has become an especially interesting name in that conversation because he could fit the kind of role the Warriors need if their injury situation forces them to keep adding depth. He has also shown solid form in recent appearances, which only adds to the appeal, but there has been no official sign of a signing yet, leaving Golden States next move very much up in the air. [Read more 🡒]
Warriors Still Need Help And One Free Agent Question Looms
The Warriors still have two roster spots to sort out, and the need for another rotation piece feels even more obvious with Stephen Curry carrying the offense and Jimmy Butler sidelined by injury. That has kept Golden State tied to the free-agent market, where the usual names continue to surface as possible stopgaps for a team that wants more proven help than a developmental swing.
Among the former All-Stars still available, DeMar DeRozan, Bradley Beal and Russell Westbrook are the ones most often mentioned as fits in the conversation around Golden State. DeRozan and Westbrook bring the kind of recognizable veteran resume that keeps them in the mix, while Beals recent health and production history make him a more complicated evaluation, which is part of why the Warriors next move remains very much an open question. [Read more 🡒]