Nets’ Ben Simmons Gets Candid About Struggles: ‘How Much Worse Can It Get?’

Ben Simmons returned to action last NBA season after he missed the entire 2021–22 season because of physical and mental health concerns.

However, the Nets guard struggled on the court, appearing in just 42 games, including 33 starts, due to injuries. His first season with the Nets ended prematurely on Feb. 15 because of knee and back issues.

In a recent interview with ESPN’s Marc J. Spears, Simmons candidly admitted that looking back at all his struggles in recent years has been overwhelming, but it’s motivated him to keep getting better.

“Sometimes I think about [my recent struggles]. I’m like, ‘Damn, that’s a lot,’” Simmons said. “Sometimes I sit down and break it down. ‘That was exhausting that I was having to deal with all that.’ But I feel like there are different situations you can handle, and this is a good test for me.

“How much worse can it get?”

Spears later asked Simmons what he would change if he could go back in time during his NBA career.

“I don’t know because it might affect the future now,” Simmons said. “I don’t think I would change anything. It’s easy to say that you would change things. But at the same time, that’s the only way you’re going to learn, or get new places. You got to go through it. That’s the beautiful thing about where I’ve been. I feel like I’ve been the lowest point where it just sucks. You’re like, ‘It ain’t no way it gets worse than this.’ But, you get through it, you push and you keep going.”

Despite what he’s recently gone through, Simmons says he’s ready to perform this upcoming season, stating that he feels “100% now.”