Ben Simmons Signs One-Year Deal with Kings

Ben Simmons is back.

The three-time NBA All-Star has agreed a one-year deal with the Sacramento Kings, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania, who reported the contract as worth $3.5 million (approximately $4.8 million AUD). The move puts the former No. 1 overall pick on an NBA roster for what will be his 10th season, after sitting out the 2025-26 campaign.

Charania broke the news on X on Friday night, Australian time, citing Simmons’ agents Max Wiepking, Sean Tribe and Ryan Arney as confirming the agreement.

A careful courtship in Sacramento

This wasn’t a snap decision by the Kings. Simmons traveled to Sacramento on Monday for what amounted to a full-scale audition.

He underwent detailed medical testing, took part in an on-court workout and sat down with head coach Doug Christie and other members of the Kings staff. In late August, he had already worked out for general manager Scott Perry and met with him for an hour, a sign the franchise wanted to do its homework on both his body and his mindset.

Inside the organization, the feedback has been encouraging.

By all accounts within the Kings, Simmons has looked strong and healthy. The same message has been coming out of Team Australia, where the 30-year-old joined a players-only minicamp last month and, crucially, came through it feeling good.

A career at a crossroads

Simmons last appeared in the league with the Los Angeles Clippers in early 2025. Since then, his future had hovered in uncertainty, his absence stretching long enough for questions to grow louder about whether he would ever re-establish himself in the NBA.

Now he gets another chance.

The 2016 No. 1 overall pick, Simmons burst into the league with the Philadelphia 76ers, winning NBA Rookie of the Year and earning three All-Star selections, as well as one All-NBA nod, on the back of his unique blend of size, playmaking and defense.

Sacramento is betting that some of that impact is still there.

For Simmons, and for a Kings team looking for an extra edge in the Western Conference, this isn’t just another signing. It’s a reset, and perhaps the last big opening for a once-elite talent to prove he still belongs among the league’s difference-makers.