The Sacramento Kings are bringing Ben Simmons back to the NBA. Simmons and the Kings have reportedly agreed to a one-year, $3.5 million contract.
Simmons is a former No. 1 overall pick and three-time NBA All Star. Now 30, he did not play in the 2025-26 season following a string of injuries.
The 6’10’’ point guard was selected with the first pick in the 2016 NBA Draft by the Philadelphia 76ers. He missed his first season with a foot injury and then won rookie of the year the following year. He would then go on to make three All Star teams in a row and became one of the league’s best defenders. His time with the 76ers came apart after the 2021 NBA playoffs. He gained a reputation for being unwilling to shoot the ball at times. which reports indicated might have been related to him being focused on efficiency.
From 2021 and on, recurring back problems have limited his career during his time with the Brooklyn Nets and last stint with the Log Angeles Clippers in 2024-25. He did not play last season in order to rehabilitate from injuries. While out of the NBA, he got involved in pro fishing.
Simmons’ career averages are 13.1 points, 7.2 assists, 7.4 rebounds and 1.5 steals. He averaged 55% from the field and 13% from three. Granted, he has only ever taken 36 threes in his entire career and hasn’t attempted one since the 2022-23 season. The 2020-21 season was the last time he played at least 58 games in a season.
Simmons now slots in as the backup point guard to Darius Acuff Jr.
It’s the second “Top Headline” on ESPN right after Engelbert retiring as WNBA Commissioner. It’s a good basketball day.
Solid move for once by Perry. Buy low on talent and see what transpires.
If BS is a douche or simply sucks, you can cut him at such a small number.
Good God … the only silver lining could be Dave shuts up trying to play GM on the radio. Ben Simmons is a complete disaster, why would anyone sign up for this?
Yes, why on Earth would a team sign a player who was former all-defensive team, averaged a near triple double to a low risk $3.5 mil one year contract in a backup role?!! God forbid!!!!
He’s been availabe for two years because his head is more broken than Ralph Sampson’s knees.
He’s a hell of a lot better than Westbrook as far as being something helpful for the team.
He’s not gonna take the ball out of the young guys hands and shoot every play.
He’s a perfect back up point guard. As long as he’s healthy he’ll defend and he’ll pass the ball.
I think this is a really good signing.
-Immediately becomes our best defender.
-Can handle the back up PG duties better than the other options.
-Back issues can be debilitating. If he’s truly healthy, we could have a premiere back up PG.
-Costs us next to nothing.
they have a number of good defenders now: Sharp, Keegan, Hunter, Precious, Mogbo, Simmons.
I agree- and he tops the list. That’s why it’s so exciting. We typically have 1-2 above average to very good defenders (most we have shipped out). Having this many & now someone who is better than all of them is awesome.
I might start:
Acuff, Zach, Keegan, Ben & Domas
Possibly. I definitely want to see the lineup a bit, but if Ben isn’t 100% healthy, I might bring him off the bench at around 18MPG to begin the season.
Adding, I also want to see him next Maxi, especially if Domas is on the block.
The Kings can run him as a point forward with Acuff coming off screens and slashing to the rim, sort of like how the Dubs use Green with Curry playing off the ball. It will take some pressure off of Acuff to always be the primary ball handler.
Yep. That’s my thinking.
The spacing on O with BS and DS would be comical
No doubt about it. We’re winning the Super Bowl
He’s from Australia, so World Cup!!
intriguing pickup. Carmichael Dave made a good pitch to get Simmons several weeks ago.
Ben Simmons finally in Sac and it didn’t cost Halliburton to get him here! I like taking low risk swings with the last couple of roster spots. Cam Whitmore is another athletic player with upside that’s available.
He doesn’t like to shoot, so he won’t take the ball out of LaVine’s hands.
Won a fishing championship during time away from basketball?… looks like we netted quite a catch!
If it doesn’t work out it’s a “Catch and Release”
Even if it works out, we will have to reel in our expecations
Perry definitely took the bait on this one.
I think a lot of us knew, if not literally then instinctually, the minute Simmons passed up that wide open dunk out of fear of getting fouled in Game 7 of that Atlanta series, that he was destined to be a Sacramento King.
Lacking a true love of basketball, of a true competitive spirit, and a complete skill set because of his inability to shoot, makes him a perfect compliment to this franchise.
Can’t handle the bright lights in the big city of playoff basketball? Come to Sacramento Ben. City of Trees. Plenty of shade here my brother. You won’t ever face a playoff situation to melt down in again.
No crown is as light as the one worn by a King under Vivek’s reign.
I am sure he will average 5-5-5 in 20 minutes a game, becoming a Temu TR Dunn whilst still missing 30 games, and get constant praise for his veteran mentorship. At season’s end, he will be gone like a whisper on the wind as if he was never really here.
I will say, I’m bracing myself for full Kayte and Jones constantly reminding us of Ben’s #1 pick status, ROY award, and his all defense accolades. I expect one of those mentioned every single game.
The talking heads to gin up something now that they can’t bring up every stupid little milestone Westbrook and DDR crossed last season.
I swear, Jones is salivating (oh the irony) on the fact that he can mix BS fishing and fish grease. Buckle up Kangz fans!
Ugh. You are right. I love DeMar, but every single time he hit a jumper, having to hear Kayte “just goes to show you…..”.
While I was mocking just the Kings-ian obviousness of his type of flameout ending up on the Kings, I really do like the signing.
There really is no downside out of all of the snark and eye rolls if he doesnt work out or is injured most of the time.
The upsides are obvious to everyone: size, athleticism, defensive versatility, good passer, doesn’t need shots, can run an offense. It won’t take much to over perform a 3.5m price tag.
But I did not think to brace myself for “A lot of fans don’t realize….” recaps every time he does anything positive.
Its started already on 1140
Not a fan of this move at all, get the low money and upside. I didn’t like the Westbrooks signing either for similar reasons but to give Russ his due he is an amazing competitor and loves to play. I just think Simmons wants to get paid and really is indifferent about competing winning. I’d rather they took a chance on a younger play or just kept the roster space in case they made a trade and had to take on an extra player.
Russ was way worse. There was a reason that he wasn’t even out of the league, but nobody wanted to sign him.
Russ is a selfish ball player who did not help with the growth of the young players at all.
Simmons is not gonna distract from the young players or the team. In fact, he might even help.
Was in the car and heard Matt George say he had the choice to sign with the Knicks or the Kings and he chose the Kings, like this is a good thing
This is where I’m at, too. Dude is a better fisherman than a basketball player. I’d like to see him try out some of his fishing moves on the floor some time after the team has been eliminated from the playoffs.
I think the important thing is he is not gonna take away from the team. Which is what Westbrook did. It’s also what fucking DDR did too. He will not negatively impact the players on the floor. He will actually help. Help by passing the ball. Help by not hogging it like Westbrook. Or DDR.
I came to TKH looking to peruse the 30 for 30 and was sad they’re not doing them this year. I came into this old post hoping to see an explanation in the comments. Haven’t found it yet, but I was able to purple this gem by Michael.
Quite possibly the best vet minimum signing that’s left out there. Really no risk and fills holes in the rotation. Better than Dipo, Payne or Payton, IMO.
I’m for it, and if it doesn’t work, whatever. C’est la vie.
Has Perry attended a private workout for Anthony Bennett too? Since we are scraping former no. 1s now anyway, bring back Fultz. We can roll our own “Big 3(cant shoot).”
Rissacher was available and probably still is.
Zion and Banchero are probably available via trade if Perry wants to give up a bunch of firsts.
Low risk, possibly half way decent reward. He can play multiple positions and is an above average defender (by Kangz standards) on a cheap one year deal. What’s not to like?
In the land of zero expectations, it is a reasonable signing. And my guess is that he misses a ton of games, providing potential minutes for the younger players that I would prefer to see play this season. But if this slams the door on Doc Rivers coming here, count me in.
Yes. That is worth 3.5m on its own.
Welcome to 1-Year-Basketball Hell, Sen Bimmons.
Cap Update.
From what I understand the Simmos signing is only a $2.4M cap hit as league rules allows teams to discount vet minimum deals against the cap. This happened in Denver with the DDR signing as well. This leaves the Kings with around $3M under the tax should they want to add an undrafted/young/inexperienced player at the league minimum to the last roster spot.
I feel they should just leave that last roster spot open for anything they may come is needed down the line.
IMO, this makes the Simmons signing all the more reasonable as it doesn’t hamstring the Kings one bit to their cap sheet. In reality Vivek is the one cutting the check for $3.5M but for us fans it’s just a $2.4M contract to the roster. Silver lining, I suppose?
I like this a lot. Low risk. Hopefully he’s healthy. He’s 30 but has missed three seasons of beatings on his body. If nothing else, let him be the team’s defensive specialist. Rooting for the guy.
Simmons appears to have a very bad combo of mental and physical health issues, and it’s tough to know where one ends and the other one begins. There’s a lot of “I’m just gonna ignore weird shit” going on in this thread. I guess this is a win if it’s not a complete disaster?
so, its just Groundhog Day then?
It’s just a vet minimum deal, so I guess a complete disaster would be they just cut him? They had to fill the 14th spot with someone.
Yeah, cut him and bring back Jay Crowder to introduce the rookies to the officials
Will they cut him or will they start him? Cousins was allowed to spread locker room cancer for years. Both seem equally likely, no matter what actually happens.
I struggle to see how this compares to DMC at all. Simmons is gong to be a locker room cancer and a starter?
My point is that there’s this idea that if Simmons is a problem, they cut him, but this organization tolerated possibly the biggest problem child in the league for years before doing anything about it. I’m not saying Simmons is Cousins. I am saying that this organization’s history is that if Simmons was a problem, he would be just as likely to be rewarded as he would to get cut.
I guess Simmons’s reputation is quitting on the team, as opposed to being actively disruptive, which…I guess is better? But why bring that into the locker room at all? Especially when you’ve got LaVine, who seems mostly interested in piling up stats, and Domas hiring a new agent to (presumably) facilitate a deal out of Sacramento.
This team has almost no young talent, and is going to lose a lot, assuming Vivek doesn’t mortgage five years of first round picks so Kawhi Leonard can get them to 30 wins. Why introduce a culture problem into the mix?
Ben Simmons is not gonna be a locker room cancer. I don’t even know if he was on other teams when he was starting.
He was a head case. But there’s nothing about him. That would make me think as a backup. He’s gonna somehow drag the team down. It doesn’t make sense.
I really don’t think he’s an issue unless you’re relying on him to be your starter and star.
I think as a back up point guard he’s perfect. Mental issues have nothing to do with that. Physically, he might break down.
But it’s no risk.
I was expecting the headline to read:
“Sac Signs Former All-Star: Kings Has Ben!”
Ben there, done that
I watched probably 80% of his games as a Sixer, those were exciting times. His game was pretty simple…
You had to hand him the ball after a rebound and have him bring up the ball or he was an instant dead spot. He was ELITE at forcing the pace and finishing at the rim before the other team knew what happened. He was ELITE at finding cutting teammates for high efficiency scores at the basket. Problem is, if that initial shot he helped create isn’t taken and the ball rotates out, he’s a dead spot. If someone else brings up the ball, he’s a dead spot.
He could defend any position and certainly brought back memories of Chris Webber defending bigger players like Shaq. He can do that well.
Basketball isn’t his passion and he loves the Hollywood stuff in NY and LA. I never once thought he would be a good fit in a small market, but things change.
He taught me to never hope a player transforms, the jump shot never came.
Seems like a perfectly fine signing, but history tells me he’ll have back problems.
He reportedly turned down camp invites from NY and the Dubs, so maybe this is just about the guaranteed money (I’m not sure why a vet minimum is all that) or maybe he sees this as an opportunity to not be under the lights of a large market and all it comes with. Who knows?
I agree, it will be his body/health that determines if he sticks around. I don’t expect him to shoot, but I would love his passing and defense. If he’s even 70% of what he was in Philly then he’s well worth the value to contract.
Time will tell.
No expectations, so I will neither be disappointed nor disappointed by this move.
Spoken like a true STR/TKH Kings fan. We all swim in apathy LOL
(I’m not telling anyone how to fan, fyi)
Yup. And as I’ve stated a few times on this thread, if it means no Russell Westbrook, that is a win.
Great move by Katy Perry signing Russell Simmons.
My son reminded me this morning that I had wanted to trade Fox for Simmons back before Simmons self-combusted. Just one of the many reasons I probably shouldn’t be the Kings GM.
That said, we’ve come full circle, and Simmons might actually have the better contract of the two now.
Kids are the worst. 😂
And hey, this may be basketball hell, but at least we’re not the Clippers.
♫ Ben, guess you and Scott need look no more.
You both found what you’ve been looking for.
With the gunners that we’ve got,
You won’t have to take a shot;
Just dime them for a three—
And their friend you will be.
(And their friend you will be.)
Ben, most GMs just turned you away.
Scott found no one else he thought could play.
Wins, expecting very few—
Let’s see what you can do—
Can you help reverse our trend?
Hope on you we can depend.
(De-pend)
On Ben
(On Ben)
On Ben…♫
6’10 ball handler that isn’t going to look for his shot, plays/played good defense, and wants to get others involved…theoretically a good fit.
That being said, who knows what they will get from Simmons. He might not play much, might be limited with health, etc. More upside than the likes of Drew Eubanks and Doug McDermott, so might as well and take a chance.
Ha the lowest of low bars, he has more upside than Eubanks and McDermott
Michael Scotto says it is a non-guaranteed contract. Guess he needs to prove himself during training camp first.
Badge Legend