The Ben Simmons saga in Brooklyn is nearing its end.
League sources confirmed to the Daily News that the 6-10 guard is finalizing a contract buyout with the Nets and is set to become a free agent. He will not be with the team during Friday’s matchup against the Miami Heat at Barclays Center.
Simmons, 28, has averaged 6.2 points, 5.2 rebounds and 6.9 assists in 33 appearances this season, including 24 starts, his most since joining the Nets in 2022-23. The three-time All-Star, in the final year of a five-year contract he signed with the Philadelphia 76ers, is owed $40.3 million this season.
The Nets have a 13-20 record with Simmons in 2024-25 and are 44-46 with him all time. He had a NET rating of -3.8 in 825 minutes this season.
“Whenever he’s out there, everybody plays hard,” Nets guard Keon Johnson said. “Guys play extremely hard running in transition, knowing that he’s one of those guys that can pretty much get it to you whenever.”
The Cleveland Cavaliers and Los Angeles Clippers have reportedly emerged as potential suitors for Simmons. The seven teams that aren’t allowed to sign a player that is waived and had a pre-existing salary of at least $12.8 million are the Knicks, Boston Celtics, Denver Nuggets, Los Angeles Lakers, Milwaukee Bucks, Minnesota Timberwolves and Phoenix Suns.
“I love playing — on and off the court — with him,” Johnson said. “Great guy off the court. He just brings so many different — just being versatile on the court, bringing a lot of different things we can do defensively, scheme-wise and also on the offensive end as well.”
Simmons, still recovering from offseason surgery, was not cleared to play in back-to-back sets this season. He underwent a successful microscopic partial discectomy in March to alleviate the pinched nerve in his lower back that limited him to just 15 games in 2023-24 — his second surgery since he was acquired in the James Harden deal in 2022.
“I just pray he can come back healthy,” former Nets interim head coach Kevin Ollie said. “I want him to have faith that he can come back and be the Ben Simmons we know he can be. And we can’t speculate on what’s going to happen in the future or regret what happened in the past.”
Simmons attempted 7.4 field goals and 1.1 free throws per 36 minutes this season, which are both career lows. He ends his Nets tenure with 90 games played and zero playoff appearances over three seasons.
“For me, it’s hard to do your job when you’re injured,” Simmons told reporters in September. “So, I’ve had about a year and a half or two years of just back and forth with the back injury and then the knee. And finally, being in a place where I’m able to compete, and then work on my game every day and have no setbacks. So, that part of it is easy for me now, just going into this year of being healthy and being prepared and ready to go. And having the expectation to play, I don’t want to think about anything else.”