Ben Simmons heads into training camp healthy. He might be the Nets' point guard if he stays that way
New York -
Ben Simmons is set to begin training camp next week with no restrictions after two injury-shortened seasons in Brooklyn.
If he stays healthy, Simmons may even be able to return to his roots as a point guard.
Nets coach Jacque Vaughn said Tuesday that the former All-Star has been playing 5-on-5 this summer and will have an expanded role offensively if he can avoid further injuries.
Simmons didn't play after the All-Star break last season, slowed by a sore left knee and then shut down early because of a nerve injury in his back. Simmons had largely fallen out of the rotation even before then, with Vaughn now saying he his learned through their discussions this summer that the No. 1 pick in the 2016 draft simply didn't have the strength to do some of the things his coach wanted after undergoing back surgery the previous offseason.
"But the things that I'm asking him to do going forward, I think he can physically do now," Vaughn said.
Simmons still views himself as a lead guard, the position he played while earning three All-Star selections in Philadelphia. He played as a forward or backup center last season in Brooklyn, where Kyrie Irving was the point guard when Simmons arrived in a trade for James Harden in February 2022.
With Irving now in Dallas and Simmons seemingly back at full strength, Vaughn said their agreement is that Simmons will be able to play the way he wants if he shows he can handle it.
"I think if Ben is able to play consistently in a certain way, there's no doubt then that he should have the basketball in his hands," Vaughn said. "You have to guard him with the basketball in his hands."
Shopping Trends
The Shopping Trends team is independent of the journalists at CTV News. We may earn a commission when you use our links to shop. Read about us.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Health care in Canada could be more like Norway's, with some improvements: study
Canada is trailing behind other Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development countries when it comes to both the number of physicians relative to the population, and its spending on primary care, according to a new analysis published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal.
Schools closed, more than 100,000 without electricity as snow falls in Quebec
More than 106,000 homes in Quebec are without electricity after Environment Canada reported nearly 25 cm of snow had fallen across the province.
Escaped kangaroo found safe after 3 days on the loose in Ontario
A kangaroo that escaped the Oshawa Zoo last week has been recaptured after more than three days on the loose, with one police officer sustaining minor injuries during the effort to apprehend the marsupial.
Israel orders evacuations as it widens offensive but Palestinians are running out of places to go
Israel's military renewed calls Monday for mass evacuations from the southern town of Khan Younis, where tens of thousands of displaced Palestinians have sought refuge in recent weeks, as it widened its ground offensive and bombarded targets across the Gaza Strip.
Dam threatens to burst in the Laurentians, residents evacuated from homes
People living in Chute-Saint-Philippe and Lac-des-Ecorces in the Laurentians are being asked to evacuate their homes due to potential infrastructure issues at the Kiamika dam and Morier dike.
'Potent and impactful storm' on the way to B.C.'s South Coast, Vancouver Island
Heavy rainfall is in store for much of southern B.C. starting Monday, when a 'potent and impactful storm' is forecast to make landfall, according to Environment and Climate Change Canada.
Oxford University Press has named 'rizz' as its word of the year
Oxford University Press has named 'rizz' as its word of the year, highlighting the popularity of a term used by Generation Z to describe someone's ability to attract or seduce another person.
Spotify axes 17 per cent of workforce in third round of layoffs this year
Spotify says it's axing 17 per cent of its global workforce, the music streaming service's third round of layoffs this year as it moves to slash costs while focusing on becoming profitable.
Hong Kong pro-democracy activist Agnes Chow jumps bail and moves to Canada
One of Hong Kong's best-known pro-democracy activists who moved to Canada to pursue her studies said she would not return to the city to meet her bail conditions, becoming the latest politician to flee Hong Kong under Beijing's crackdown on dissidents.
Politics
-
Large pro-Israel rally planned for Parliament Hill on Monday
Prominent Jewish groups are set to host a rally on Parliament Hill this afternoon in solidarity with Israel.
-
'Meta took a bad decision': Canada's heritage minister says about Online News Act fallout
Canada's heritage minister insists the federal government is still working to get Facebook and Instagram parent company Meta back to the bargaining table to negotiate a deal to compensate Canadian news organizations as part of the regulatory process for the controversial Online News Act.
-
Liberals, NDP, Bloc accuse Conservatives of stalling Canada-Ukraine free trade deal
Conservatives faced a barrage of partisan fire Friday in the House of Commons as their political rivals accused the official Opposition of trying to stall measures aimed at helping Ukraine.
Health
-
Health care in Canada could be more like Norway's, with some improvements: study
Canada is trailing behind other Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development countries when it comes to both the number of physicians relative to the population, and its spending on primary care, according to a new analysis published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal.
-
This Canadian couple used surrogacy to have a child. Here's what they want you to know
Families that need help conceiving a child are met with financial burdens that should be covered through government health care and insurance, advocates say.
-
Naloxone: What to know about the opioid overdose-reversing drug, free across Canada
Health Canada has called the opioid crisis one of the most serious public health threats in recent history, and an addictions specialist says everyone can play a part in helping reduce the death toll. All it takes is access to naloxone, a life-saving medication that temporarily reverses an opioid overdose.
Sci-Tech
-
'That's the real thing': Edmonton man makes rare meteorite find
In October 2022, Doug Olsen was folding laundry in his southeast Edmonton home when he was startled by the loud bang of a meteorite landing on his roof.
-
Not so dead as a dodo: 'De-extinction' plan to reintroduce bird to Mauritius
An audacious collaboration between geneticists and conservationists plans to bring back the extinct dodo and reintroduce it to its once-native habitat in Mauritius.
-
Montana's first-in-the-nation ban on TikTok blocked by judge who says it's unconstitutional
Montana's first-in-the-nation law banning the video-sharing app TikTok in the state was blocked Thursday, one month before it was set to take effect, by a federal judge who called the measure unconstitutional.
Entertainment
-
Spotify axes 17 per cent of workforce in third round of layoffs this year
Spotify says it's axing 17 per cent of its global workforce, the music streaming service's third round of layoffs this year as it moves to slash costs while focusing on becoming profitable.
-
Review: The long KISS goodbye ends at New York's Madison Square Garden, but avatars loom
It's the end of the road for KISS. But it's not the end of KISS. The hard-rocking quartet from New York City played final live concerts Friday and Saturday at Madison Square Garden, culminating a half century of rocking and rolling all night and partying every day.
-
Renowned Canadian musician and former April Wine singer Myles Goodwyn dead at 75
Myles Goodwyn, the award-winning Canadian singer and songwriter who shot to stardom as the former lead singer of April Wine, has died at age 75.
