BOSTON — If Ben Simmons goes to play a playoff recreation this season, the choice will likely be his, not anybody else’s.
That’s the message Nets head coach Steve Nash delivered hours forward of tipoff for Game 2 in opposition to the Celtics on Wednesday, precisely 10 months after Simmons final performed in an NBA recreation.
“There’s no other way than him to say, ‘I’m ready,’ especially after an absence this long,” Nash stated on the TD Garden. “So whenever he is ready, it’s gonna have to be on him to say, ‘I feel comfortable,’ ‘I feel ready to go,’ ‘I want to play,’ ‘I want to contribute.’ We can’t push him places when you have been out this long. It’s gotta be something where he’s definitely comfortable and ready to play.”
Nash added that will probably be “a collective decision” together with the crew’s efficiency employees, however finally, Simmons will name his personal shot.
“This has been a prolonged absence,” he stated. “So I think it’s more about they [Simmons and the performance staff] are in this together trying to find a resolution, a time for him to come back where he is safe to play and well enough to contribute.”
Simmons has continued to make progress after receiving an epidural in mid-March to alleviate the ache related to a herniated disk in his decrease again. This week, Nash stated, the 25-year-old All-Star ahead practiced in a four-on-four setting with contact for the primary time since injuring his again. As Nash spoke, Simmons walked previous the small pool of reporters gathered for Nets’ shootaround availability onto the TD Garden court docket.
“Ben’s doing well,” Nash stated. “He’s gonna work out again today, see if he continues to improve, so he’s still progressing and moving forward.”
Simmons participated within the four-on-four on Monday then a five-on-zero walkthrough on Tuesday that Nash outlined as “scripting.” Nash stated the scripting is necessary in order that Simmons is aware of what actions the crew is making an attempt to run if he does make his debut, however hedged that thought course of with the changes that are available playoff basketball.
“If he’s able to play at some point, having him kind of become as familiar as possible with what we’re doing, because things change from day-to-day,” he stated. “You’re making adjustments, so having him be involved with all of that stuff, so if he is able to play at some point, he’s comfortable.”
Simmons’ sheer presence in apply and shootaround has caught the attention of a few of his teammates.
“Yeah, he’s coming along pretty good,” Nic Claxton stated at shootaround on Wednesday. “He definitely has a real good swagger about himself right now. So, you know, I think the whole world is ready to see him back out there and he can definitely help us out in a lot of ways.”
Some teammates, nevertheless, nonetheless stay at midnight.
“I haven’t seen much,” stated Seth Curry, Simmons’ former teammate in Philadelphia. “I haven’t been following him around. [I’m] locked into what we’re doing. Whatever he’s doing, I haven’t really been in the gym to see it. I haven’t seen much.”
It stays unclear whether or not Simmons has progressed sufficient to play in Game 3 at Barclays Center on Saturday. Nash didn’t rule Simmons out for the Nets’ first residence playoff recreation but additionally stated the crew could be cautious given how lengthy the star ahead has gone since taking part in an NBA recreation.
“I wouldn’t be able to say anything about that because I’m not even sure how he’s gonna get through these weeks,” he stated after Tuesday’s apply at Harvard. “We have to also consider it’s a nine-month absence, or whatever it is, so it’s not just like he had a six-week absence. I think it’s a pretty unique scenario and it’s not as linear as the other in-season injuries.”
Simmons final performed for the Philadelphia 76ers in opposition to the Atlanta Hawks within the Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals on June 20. He cited psychological well being points as his cause for not taking part in a recreation or absolutely taking part in Sixers coaching camp this season earlier than arriving in Brooklyn through the Feb. 10 James Harden deal.
Simmons didn’t play when he arrived in Brooklyn as a result of he wanted to ramp up his conditioning. He injured his again throughout that ramp-up.
()
Source: www.bostonherald.com