Ben Simmons won’t be available to the Nets anytime soon.
He missed the team’s 121-102 loss to the Knicks at Barclays Center and will remain out for approximately the next two weeks at least.
The three-time All-Star has been out since Nov. 6 with a nerve impingement in his lower back.
He’s increased his individual work, but that Simmons is not yet participating in team drills is not encouraging that he’ll be back sooner rather than later.
Simmons received an epidural this month.
“The big part of it is the strength part of it,” head coach Jacque Vaughn said before Wednesday’s game. “As he continues to gain strength, that will allow additional bodies to be around him. No, he’s not playing two-on-two, three-on-three right now, hopefully that’s in the future going ahead. But I think overall, he’s just adding different stimuli in order to get to a point where you can put bodies around him.”
The oft-injured Simmons has been sidelined far more than he’s been able to play since the Nets acquired him as part of the Feb. 10, 2022 package they received from the 76ers in the James Harden blockbuster.
He missed the entire 2021-22 season with both the 76ers and Nets due to a back injury and mental health battles.
He then had an offseason microdiscectomy surgery for a herniated L-4 disk on May 5, 2022, and rushed back just five months later to start last season with the Nets.
But it was clear he was playing through pain and not ready, and he averaged just 6.9 points, 6.3 rebounds and 6.1 assists per game in 42 games before being shut down for the rest of the season.
Simmons entered this season, for the first time in three years, fully healthy physically and mentally healthy and said he felt “amazing.”
But it took hardly any time for him to be unavailable again, playing just six games before being sidelined with his latest injury. He averaged 6.5 points, 10.8 rebounds and 6.7 assists per game in the six games.
After Wednesday night’s loss, Simmons has played in only 48 of the 145 total games (137 regular-season games in addition to eight playoff games) the team had played since acquiring him, meaning he’s suited up for just 33.1 percent of possible games.
The Nets have paid Simmons roughly $38.3 million for missed games during his tenure in Brooklyn.
Mikal Bridges’ recent shooting woes hit a new low.
He scored 15 points, but it came on a woeful 4 of 21 shooting from the field and 1 of 8 from 3-point range.
Bridges’ shooting rut emerged during the team’s road trip, in which it went 1-4.
He shot just 36 percent from the field in those five games.
Lonnie Walker IV (hamstring), who missed his ninth-straight game Wednesday, is expected to progress to five-on-five activity and return to the lineup next week.
Dennis Smith Jr. (back), who missed his seventh-straight game, has been cleared for full contact and will be questionable for Friday’s game against the Nuggets.