Ben Simmons Signs with Sacramento Kings for Comeback
Ben Simmons is back in the NBA. And he’s taking his shot in Sacramento.
The former No. 1 overall pick has agreed to a one-year, $3.5 million deal with the Kings, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania and Marc Spears, ending a full season out of the league and opening one of the more intriguing comeback attempts of the year.
A Careful Courtship in Sacramento
This wasn’t a casual flyer.
Charania reported that Simmons flew to Sacramento on Monday for an exhaustive visit: detailed medical testing, an on-court workout, and sit-downs with head coach Doug Christie and multiple staff members. Before that, in late August, he had already worked out for general manager Scott Perry and spent an hour in conversation with him.
The Kings wanted to see the body, the game, and the mindset. Simmons, after everything, clearly wanted to show all three.
A Career Stalled by a Body That Wouldn’t Cooperate
Simmons’ story is well known by now. He arrived in Philadelphia as the top pick in the 2016 draft and, for a time, looked like the league’s next great two-way engine. An oversized playmaker, an All-NBA defender, an All-Star.
Then the injuries started to stack up.
Since the 2020-21 season, he hasn’t played more than 60 games in a year. He missed the entire 2021-22 campaign. Even his relative “high” point in recent seasons — 51 games in 2024-25 split between the Nets and Clippers — came with diminished numbers: 5.0 points, 5.6 assists and 4.7 rebounds per game.
After that, nothing. Simmons sat out the entire 2025-26 season, unsigned and unwilling to return until he trusted his body again.
‘Bulletproof’ or Nothing
In December, he told The Athletic’s Sam Jane that he wouldn’t step back on the floor until he felt “bulletproof.” It wasn’t about a jersey or a market. It was about durability and belief.
By June, the tone had shifted. Simmons went public with his intention to come back, openly naming Miami and Philadelphia as potential destinations.
“I plan on getting as strong as I can physically, getting my ass on the court, and then the team realizing that my abilities will be needed,” he told Clay Skipper of Men’s Health. “I don’t have a plan on where. ... Maybe I’ll go back to Philly. Miami would be nice. And not because it’s Miami—I like Erik Spoelstra, I like the Heat, I like their organization, I like the culture.”
The league listened. Sacramento moved.
What the Kings Are Really Buying
This is not the All-Star version of Ben Simmons. The Kings know that.
What they’re paying for is role, versatility and a sliver of upside at a bargain price.
Simmons still sees the floor as well as almost anyone his size. He can handle, initiate, and find shooters. He can guard multiple positions and give Sacramento real size on the perimeter and at the point of attack. The Kings are not asking him to be a primary scorer; they’re asking him to organize, connect, and defend.
For a team that has been scrambling for floor leadership since trading De’Aaron Fox to the San Antonio Spurs, that matters. Rookie guard Darius Acuff Jr. brings talent and promise, but he shouldn’t have to carry the entire playmaking burden from day one. Simmons gives Christie another ball-handler, another decision-maker, another look.
On a one-year, $3.5 million deal, the risk is minimal. The potential payoff — even if it’s just competent, switchable defense and steady table-setting — is significant.
A Different Kind of Comeback
This isn’t a star returning to reclaim his throne. It’s a former franchise centerpiece trying to rebuild his career as a specialist and stabilizer.
Sacramento doesn’t suddenly vault into title contention because of this move. The West is too deep, the questions around Simmons’ health and consistency too real. But the Kings do walk into the new season with a more complete roster and a clearer idea of how they want to play.
Now it’s on Simmons.
He wanted to feel “bulletproof.” The contract is signed, the medicals done, the door back into the league opened. The next test comes under the lights, with the ball in his hands and a franchise betting that there’s still something left to unlock.
