Still a free agent, Ben Simmons is reportedly thinking about retiring from basketball

The NBA season is creeping up, and while most of the free agency dust has settled, a couple of storylines are still dangling out there.

Ben Simmons still thinks he’s worth more than a veteran minimum but unfortunately the NBA strongly disagrees

Restricted guys like Josh Giddey, Jonathan Kuminga, and Quentin Grimes still have to figure out whether they’re taking the qualifying offer or hammering out extensions, but the “veteran market” is basically down to Russell Westbrook and… Ben Simmons.

Well, maybe not Ben Simmons. Word is he’s actually considering retirement.

DEVELOPING: Ben Simmons is considering retiring from the NBA, per @SbondyNBA pic.twitter.com/SDr8kLTgT8

— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) September 3, 2025

From a basketball perspective, this isn’t exactly shocking. Simmons hasn’t been able to find a team for a reason. The new CBA makes every roster dollar matter, and if you’re a GM, are you really burning cap space on a guy who hasn’t proven he can stay on the floor, mentally or physically?

If Simmons wants more than the minimum, good luck. That’s not happening. Teams will roll the dice on a no-risk, minimum deal, but beyond that? No shot.

Brian Windhorst on Ben Simmon's Market: "The interest has been lukewarm…The reality is, he's looking at the minimum contract. He might even be forced to take a contract where he's not guaranteed. At the end of the day Ben Simmons stock has been falling dramatically for years" pic.twitter.com/1hxriNL8Lh

— MrBuckBuck (@MrBuckBuckNBA) September 4, 2025

If this is really it for Simmons, his career arc is one of the craziest in recent memory. He came into Philly as the next great franchise cornerstone, the supposed perfect complement to Joel Embiid. Then it all unraveled with the infamous passed-up layup, the endless playoff flameouts, the back issues, the holdouts, the mental battles.

The rise and fall of Ben Simmons was as fast as it gets.

In life terms, it’s fair to say that Ben Simmons won. The guy is 29 years old, already banked hundreds of millions, and can walk away tomorrow without having to worry about a thing. Sure, he’ll forever be the punchline in “what if he just took the layup?” and “I wonder if he stayed in Philly” jokes, but he’s also financially set for life.

Not a bad trade-off.

There’s also a little “you can’t fire me, I quit” energy here.

Are we really supposed to believe that if a team came to him with a guaranteed deal above the minimum, he’d just walk away out of principle? Please.

This feels more like spin than a real retirement plan.

If I had to bet, I’d say Ben Simmons stays unsigned for now, then pops up again around the trade deadline when a contender needs a depth piece or someone gets hurt.

If this really is the end, Ben Simmons goes down as one of the most polarizing players of the last decade. He had a career that was as much about potential and drama as it was about basketball.

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