New Nets trying to figure out how Ben Simmons fits
Ben Simmons of the Nets controls the ball in the first half against the 76ers at Barclays Center on Feb. 11. Credit: Jim McIsaac
You might think the NBA All-Star break will be a welcome opportunity for the Nets to sort out their jigsaw puzzle of a roster in advance of the season’s homestretch.
But there will be an important part of that process missing.
“I wish we could practice during the break,” coach Jacque Vaughn said of the stretch that was to begin after Wednesday night’s game against the Heat at Barclays Center. “That would make it more beneficial.”
When the Nets do return to work next week, near the top of the agenda will be what to do with Ben Simmons, the most famous and highly paid player left after the trades of Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant.
It does not look good so far. Simmons did not start the three games after Durant was traded, and his minutes dropped three games in a row entering Wednesday.
Vaughn was bluntly honest in discussing the Simmons situation after he played only 13 minutes in Monday’s 124-106 loss to the Knicks.
"It's going to be some work that we have to do," the coach said. "Because you just take a look at what the lineups could potentially look like. You put another big next to Ben, then you’ve got to figure out what the spacing is around him.
“Then if you put a playmaker next to him, then you’ve got to figure out what Ben looks like without the basketball. Then if you go small with Ben, then you’ve got to figure out, can you rebound enough with him?
"So the challenges are ahead of us. We'll look at them head-on. We'll figure it out. We have the personnel to figure it out. Whether it is me mixing and matching throughout different pieces of the game and allowing him to have a group and run with a group, that part we'll figure out. But you see the challenges that lie ahead.”
Simmons, 26, came to the Nets last February in a trade with the 76ers for James Harden. He did not play last season with the Nets.
This season, the team hoped he would be a complementary piece for Durant and Irving, which made sense in theory given Simmons’ focus on defense and passing rather than shooting.
He told Newsday after the Durant trade that he “definitely” looked forward to playing a bigger role. He has not.
Against the Knicks, he had two points, three rebounds and two assists.
"With [Jalen] Brunson being out there, trying to throw different bodies with him," Vaughn said. "The rebounding piece we're always concerned about, so we didn't want Ben to be the lone big out there.
“We tried him with another big; I didn't like that rhythm of the game because we weren't scoring enough at that time. So a lot of different problems thrown at you in the course of a game. You try to figure them out."
Simmons, a three-time All-Star with the 76ers, entered Wednesday averaging 7.0 points, 6.3 rebounds and 6.1 assists.
He is due to earn $37.9 million next season and $40.3 million the season after that. Like the Giants with receiver Kenny Golladay last season, merely being a team’s highest-paid player does not necessarily translate to playing time.
But Vaughn will keep looking for a solution.
“Trying to figure out what lineup fits around Ben, what position fits for Ben, how we can make him look good at every opportunity, that's the goal,” Vaughn said.
“I'm still trying to figure that out. That's on me to figure that out. But I think overall as a team, we're going to try different lineups to try to figure this thing out."
Neil Best first worked at Newsday in 1982, returned in 1985 after a detour to Alaska and has been here since, specializing in high schools, college basketball, the NFL and most recently sports media and business.
