'The most hostile environment he's probably ever going to be in': Ben Simmons returns to Philadelphia

Ten days ago, the thought of Ben Simmons making his instrumentality to Philadelphia and really playing successful a crippled was unfathomable.

The Brooklyn Nets had conscionable played the LA Clippers and Simmons looked wholly retired of sorts: timid, uncomfortable, unsure of his relation connected the team. The Nets bushed the Clippers, 110-95, but Simmons was hardly a footnote successful the container score, finishing with 2 points successful 14 ineffectual minutes.

The adjacent nighttime against the Los Angeles Lakers, Simmons was a precocious scratch with genu soreness. Such a precocious scratch, helium spent 10 minutes down closed doors aft the crippled with Nets wide manager Sean Marks, the 2 discussing however Simmons needed to pass amended to debar a repetition of the situation.

But Simmons has emerged from that gathering with Marks, and that dreadful play successful Los Angeles, playing his champion hoops successful years.

After failing to people successful treble figures successful immoderate of his archetypal 9 games, Simmons has scored 11, 15 and 22 points successful the Nets' past 3 games, including an businesslike 11-for-13 from the level successful Sunday's triumph against the Memphis Grizzlies. His defence has started to lucifer its erstwhile excellence, and his rebounding has immoderate verve to it. Even his on-court demeanor has improved.

It is precisely the benignant of progression Simmons and the Nets were hoping for this season. The champion imaginable lead-in to the deluge of boos and emotions he'll look erstwhile helium steps connected the tribunal to play astatine the Wells Fargo Center connected Tuesday (7:30 p.m. ET, TNT) to vie successful his archetypal crippled against his erstwhile squad since a messy exit that marred each of past season.

"What I've ever said to him is, 'Let's conscionable region hoops for the infinitesimal and spot who the radical are who are genuinely supporting you.'"

Patty Mills, Nets defender talking astir teammate Ben Simmons

And yet nobody, not adjacent Simmons, tin archer you however he'll respond erstwhile helium enters the arena and faces his erstwhile teammates -- and a acquainted assemblage anxious to invited him back.

"My caput is telling me, 'Go beryllium you,'" Simmons told ESPN. "But past my body's trying to drawback up. So it feels similar I'm conscionable progressing each day, each game. Just gathering up.

"I'm inactive trying to get a rhythm, find my pace. It's casual to beryllium similar ... earlier the injury, [I] was 1 of the champion defenders [in the league], and now, I've got to relearn a batch of things, rebuild. It takes time, but you determination done it."

Simmons continues to enactment with a therapist connected however to attack challenges similar Tuesday night's game, but helium has not extensively discussed his intelligence wellness beyond an quality connected erstwhile teammate J.J. Redick's podcast during the preseason.

"It was bully to person that disconnected my chest," helium says of the podcast appearance. "Because it was pugnacious erstwhile I was dealing with it, and it's inactive conscionable time by day."

Tuesday volition beryllium his biggest situation yet.

"It's astir apt the astir hostile situation he's astir apt ever going to beryllium in," Nets manager Jacque Vaughn says. "And to get implicit this hurdle would beryllium monumental to wherever he's astatine close present and getting backmost to the signifier that helium wants to get backmost to."

Simmons returned to Philadelphia arsenic a subordinate of the Nets connected March 10, conscionable a period aft the commercialized that extricated him from the franchise that had drafted him No. 1 wide successful 2016. But helium was successful thoroughfare apparel that night, not successful uniform. And adjacent that was uncomfortable and intense.

"It was a bum unreserved from the clip we near the hotel," Nets teammate Patty Mills says. "We had to spell different mode retired of the hotel, past radical were pursuing our bus."

Inside the arena, fans serenaded Simmons with boos and expletive-laced chants astatine each opportunity. There was other information astir the Nets' bench, other guards successful each section. Mills, who has known Simmons since helium was a teen prodigy successful their autochthonal Australia, stood protectively by his broadside the full night.

"What I've ever said to him is, 'Let's conscionable region hoops for the infinitesimal and spot who the radical are who are genuinely supporting you,'" Mills says. "I deliberation that unluckily helium conscionable didn't person capable of that from what I saw from afar. So for that game, I conscionable wanted to marque definite helium had that support. That nary substance what happens, I'm there. Literally by your side."

The Nets took a accidental connected Simmons successful the commercialized that sent James Harden to Philadelphia due to the fact that they believed -- oregon astatine slightest hoped -- helium would find his mode done the intelligence and carnal issues that person derailed his past 2 seasons.

They besides believed they had the close infrastructure successful spot to enactment him.

"He's a focal portion of our team," Marks says. "Supporting Ben and having a existent concern with Ben ... getting him playing astatine the level that he's susceptible of is captious to this squad having success. That's connected the court, disconnected the court, everything. Physically, emotionally, everything. He has the quality to marque a batch of radical better."

In different words, the Nets are counting connected him -- which isn't ever casual to do.

"There's been moments wherever I've felt quick, fast, strong," Simmons says. "But it's similar a rollercoaster. It's up and down. And it's connected me. I person to enactment with it, beryllium accordant and conscionable propulsion through."

Vaughn, who is 10 games into his head-coaching tenure aft the Nov. 1 departure of Steve Nash, made a constituent of gathering with Simmons portion the squad was connected the roadworthy past week.

"I've truly conscionable been trying to larn astir him and what helium needs," Vaughn says.

If the squad had been home, Vaughn says helium would've invited Simmons to his location to assistance found trust. But due to the fact that the squad was connected the road, and the unit connected some of them to crook things astir was truthful urgent, helium invited him to his edifice country successful Sacramento to speech earlier the game.

"Sometimes I deliberation guys conscionable privation to beryllium heard," Vaughn says. "And truthful for maine to perceive to him, astir wherever helium wants to get his crippled to, that helium believes he's going to get it backmost to an All-Defensive level. To perceive those words means that we're going to enactment connected it together."

The situation for Vaughn is to gain his player's spot successful a mode that doesn't spot Simmons' needs implicit the team's. To physique their narration without hurting his credibility with others.

If Simmons wants to start, arsenic helium had 282 of the 287 vocation games he'd played in, helium has to gain those minutes.

If Simmons wants to beryllium successful closing lineups, helium has to amusement the quality to marque escaped throws nether pressure.

"I've told him, 'I'm going to ever bash what's champion for the group,'" Vaughn says. "That's my occupation arsenic a coach. I'm not trying to cozy up to him to summation his trust. It's more, I'm accordant with my attack with him each day. And truthful helium sees what consistency does."

Vaughn brought Simmons disconnected the seat aft he'd travel backmost from a genu wounded that forced the 26-year-old to person his genu drained and acquisition platelet affluent plasma therapy connected 2 abstracted occasions.

While helium was out, the Nets had recovered occurrence with Nic Claxton successful the starting frontcourt. So Vaughn wanted to instrumentality with what had worked alternatively than plugging Simmons backmost successful arsenic a starter. But that meant moving to the 2nd portion and playing arsenic a back-up center, thing he'd ne'er done successful his career. It was uncomfortable and a stroke to his confidence.

He struggled. But the gathering with Vaughn seemed to wide the air.

"I told him I privation to spot him bash highly good and for him to spot what consistency does," Vaughn says. "He's improved successful that, whether it's shooting other escaped throws, doing your vitamin enactment consistently and astatine a gait that replicates the game.

"Vitamin enactment is your regular touch-up with your idiosyncratic coach. Shots you whitethorn get into the game, themes that I mightiness springiness the manager to enactment on. Practicing those things truthful there's carryover to the game, [and] taking them seriously, due to the fact that it's important for your teammates to spot you successful that situation working."

Since that disappointing play successful LA, and meetings with some Marks and Vaughn, Simmons is averaging 16 points, 7 rebounds and 5 assists -- adjacent to his vocation averages successful each 3 categories -- successful 29 minutes a crippled arsenic the Nets went 2-1.

Perhaps astir important, though, were the escaped throws helium made astatine the extremity of the overtime triumph against the Trail Blazers. Portland had copied what the Atlanta Hawks had truthful efficaciously done successful the Eastern Conference playoff bid successful 2021 that sent this full concern into a spiral: intentionally foul Simmons and situation him to marque escaped throws.

It was a nonstop challenge.

"I didn't flinch and didn't look astatine my coaches. I looked astatine him and had nary inkling of taking him out," Vaughn says. "That's portion of the spot betwixt him and I, that we're building."

Simmons made 3 of four.

"That was immense for him," Vaughn says.

Tuesday nighttime successful Philadelphia volition beryllium immense arsenic well. There is nary mode to cognize if Simmons is acceptable for each that he'll person to face. There is nary mode to cognize however helium volition respond to it, either.

"Overall there's lone truthful overmuch you tin say," Simmons says. "Unless you had an acquisition similar that yourself."