Ben Simmons was a disaster for the Clippers in Game 5 against the Nuggets on Tuesday

Drew Smith
April 30, 2025
Sixers
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Quick check in on Ben Simmons, who’s currently playing with the Clippers in the NBA Playoffs. The Clips dropped Game 5 to the Nuggets on Tuesday night, and Simmons, now somehow still occupying an NBA roster spot, played five minutes.

Our old friend dropped a thrilling zero points to go along with one rebound, one block… and one airball. From the elbow. With Nikola Jokic practically daring him to shoot.

A Ben Simmons Classic

Ben Simmons COOKED Nikola Jokic 🤯🔥 pic.twitter.com/7rpTJxZhZW
— BricksCenter (@BricksCenter) April 30, 2025

Through five playoff games, Simmons is averaging 8.4 minutes, 0.8 points, 1.4 boards, 0.8 assists, 0.8 blocks, and somehow still racking up 2.2 fouls per game. That’s two made shots on six attempts. He’s like the invisible man out there, except you still see him because he’s fouling somebody or clanking a jumper off the stanchion.

Remember when this guy was playing 25+ minutes a night for Brooklyn earlier in the year and people convinced themselves he might be back?

That ended quickly.

The Nets bought out Ben Simmons, the Clippers scooped him up off the scrap heap, and he gave them 18 games of mediocrity (3 pts, 3 assists, 4 rebounds) before quietly fading into the 8.5-man rotation abyss behind Tyronn Lue’s starters.

Look — it sucks. It does. Ben Simmons had elite tools. He was an All-Star here in Philly and an All-NBA defender. Now he’s just floating around the league like a $40 million consultant on what to avoid when trying to build a championship contender. It’s hard not to feel some pity watching him pass up an elbow jumper in a playoff game while Jokic sags ten feet away.

At the same time, Ben Simmons chose this

He quit on the Sixers. He bailed on his teammates. He created a mess on his way out that left Joel Embiid to pick up the pieces and everyone else in the organization scrambling. So no, there’s no sympathy left in the tank. Not when he’s doing cardio for five minutes, chucking up one airball, and calling it a night.

Hope Ben Simmons enjoys the view from the bench in Game 6.