PHILADELPHIA — As it turns out, it was just one game of horror for Ben Simmons.
The Nets star was available for Saturday’s game against the 76ers, although he remains on a minutes restriction after missing Wednesday’s game with a left knee contusion.
He was injured Monday while trying to block a layup in the fourth quarter, landed awkwardly and was sidelined, ultimately missing 38 games with a one-game cameo before ultimately missing another game. did.
“It’s never a lingering thing,” Nets head coach Jacques Vaughn said before the game. “Something that happened suddenly during the game has responded to a few days of treatment, so I hope I can continue playing.”
Simmons’ initial results provided optimism that he had avoided further injury in a career filled with and defined by injuries.
An MRI scan showed there was no structural damage and the home did not require drainage, The Post’s Brian Lewis reported.
And Bourne reiterated Thursday that it was a “hopeful expectation” the Nets would have their star player back in the lineup at Wells Fargo Center. Simmons spent the first four healthy seasons of his career there, appearing in three All-Star Games and excelling as a rookie. He earned Player of the Year honors, All-NBA First Team selection, and All-Defensive First Team berth.
It all depended on how Simmons responded to treatment.
At the time, Simmons showed flashes of the potential the Nets had hoped for when they acquired him.
Instead, a baffling collection of missed games ensued.
As Simmons’ agent Bernie Lee wrote in X earlier this week, Simmons’ absence from the Suns game is a “career here.”
This is finally the exact timeline, with Simmons recording his third game at the Wells Fargo Center since the February 2022 trade, replicating his 11-assist, zero-turnover performance against the Jazz on Monday. I could try to do that.
“I think we saw his last chance to play against Utah and how that changes the scope of our entire team on both ends of the floor,” Vaughn said. “So it’s a great opportunity for him to get back together with his teammates. So I’m happy that he was able to play and that he was able to respond to his treatment and be ready for today’s game.”
Dorian Finney-Smith (left ankle sprain) missed three consecutive games and continues to be sidelined.
Dayron Sharpe (hyperextended left knee) did some court work with one of the Nets’ coaches, but there were no “extra bodies around him,” Vaughn said.
76ers star Joel Embiid missed Saturday’s game due to a torn lateral meniscus in his left knee.
