Ben Simmons is back in the NBA, and the internet reacted exactly how you would expect.
The Kings agreed to a one-year, $3.5 million deal with Simmons and made it official Tuesday. The welcome post hit social media with a simple “welcome to the 916,” and the replies filled up within minutes. Jump shot jokes. Free throw jokes. People asking whether the contract was per game or per season.
It was funny. It was also a little unfair, because the basketball case for this signing is more reasonable than the punchlines suggest.
What Sacramento is actually buying
Simmons is 30 and sat out the entire 2025-26 season. His last NBA action came in 2024-25 split between Brooklyn and the LA Clippers, and it was not good. Chronic back problems have followed him for years, and that is the single biggest variable here.
But look at the number. Three and a half million dollars for one year is a flier, not a commitment. The Kings are not betting the franchise on Simmons rediscovering his 2019 form. They are betting a rounding error that a former No. 1 overall pick and three-time All-Star still has something left as a connective piece.
Sacramento reportedly wants him as a backup point guard behind rookie Darius Acuff Jr., with the flexibility to play across positions. That is the right job description. Simmons at his best was a giant playmaker who could guard four spots and push in transition. None of that requires a jump shot.
The part the jokes get right
The skepticism earns its keep in one place. Simmons has never solved the shooting problem, and at 30 with a surgically repaired back, he is not going to. Defenses will keep sagging off him. Late-game lineups will keep having a reason to sit him.
The 2016 No. 1 pick who made three All-Star teams by age 24 is not walking through the door. Whatever Sacramento gets will be a diminished, situational version of that player.
The counterargument is opportunity. The Kings are coming off a bad year and are not a contender. That means minutes exist. Simmons will not have to beg for a role behind a playoff rotation, and he will not be asked to be the closer. Low pressure and available run is the best possible environment for a comeback attempt.
My take
This is a smart, cheap swing by Sacramento and a necessary one for Simmons. If his back holds up and he plays 60 games as a defensive-minded playmaker off the bench, the Kings got a bargain. If it does not work out, they walk away in a year with nothing on the books.
The downside is a social media roasting they have already absorbed. The upside is a former All-Star at the veteran minimum tier of pricing.
What I want to see is whether Simmons attacks. The version of him that fell apart in Brooklyn had stopped hunting the rim, and that is the tell. If he is finishing through contact and pushing pace in October, the Kings have something. If he is standing in the dunker spot waiting for the ball, the replies were right.
He gets one more real chance, on a team with nothing to lose. That is more than most players in his situation get.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.