Ben Simmons leaves game with left knee soreness
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Ben Simmons exited Monday night's game against the Orlando Magic with left knee soreness - an injury the 26-year-old combatted with just a few weeks ago.
Simmons, who missed a total of five games due to left knee soreness, exited the game with 9:03 remaining in the second quarter. After minorly favoring his left leg after a play during a 6-0 Nets run, the swingman was subbed out and went straight to the locker room to be evaluated. Simmons did not return to the bench in the second quarter and the team officially ruled him out with left knee soreness at halftime. It is unclear whether he returned to the bench for the second half.
The left knee soreness appeared in the second game of the two-game mini-series against the Indiana Pacers. He went on to miss a total of four-straight games before returning against the Dallas Mavericks in Dallas - a game he played only 15 minutes. The only other game the swingman missed due to his left knee soreness was against the Los Angeles Lakers where he was a late scratch prior to tip-off.
In that span, Simmons underwent an MRI that came back clean and had to get his knee drained to reduce some of the swelling. After being cleared to return, Simmons came off the bench.
After putting the left knee soreness behind him, Simmons has slowly been showing flashes of his All-Star caliber skillset. In the last two games, Simmons scored a season-high 20 points against the Indiana Pacers on Friday.
The Nets will remain at home for the next five contests, hosting the Washington Wizards, Toronto Raptors, Boston Celtics, Charlotte Hornets, and Atlanta Hawks in that span.
