Our exit interview series on the 2025 Clippers continues with Ben Simmons, who the Clippers picked up on the buyout market mid-season.

Basic Information

Height: 6’10

Weight: 240 pounds

Position: Center/Point Guard/Power Forward

Age: 28 (29 in July)

Years in NBA: 9 (played in 7)

Key Regular Season Stats: 2.9 points, 3.1 assists, 3.8 rebounds, 0.7 steals, 0.4 blocks, and 0.8 turnovers in 16.4 minutes per game across 18 games played (zero starts) on 43.4/0/85.7 (0 3PA, 0.4 FTA attempts) shooting splits (46.4 True Shooting)

Postseason Stats: 0.8 points, 0.8 assists, 1.4 rebounds, 0.2 steals, 0.8 blocks, and 0.4 turnovers in 8.4 minutes per game across five games played (zero starts) on 33.3/0 shooting splits (0 3PA, 0 FTA) shooting splits (33.3 True Shooting)

Expectations

When the Clippers signed Ben Simmons to a minimum deal covering the rest of the season after he was bought out by the Nets post-trade deadline, expectations were extremely varied. There were some optimists who thought that putting Ben on a team with structure, talent, and expectations would get him back at least somewhat close to the realm he was in his prime on the Sixers. Some, on the pessimistic side, thought he’d be awful and would not contribute anything positively at all. Most, in the middle, figured he’d probably be a better backup center than Mo Bamba or Kai Jones but that his severe on-court limitations would make him unplayable when games got serious in the playoffs.

Reality

Ben immediately set the bar at a high level, when, in his first game on the team, he logged over 27 minutes and played in crunch time in a win over the Jazz. Ben was just awesome in that game, scoring 12 points on 4-6 shooting, adding 7 rebounds and 6 assists, and dominating on defense with 3 steals and a block. Honestly, he might have even been better than those numbers. He looked confident on offense, contributed on the boards, and was terrific both switching and helping on defense. The optimists were crowing and the pessimists had eggs on their faces.

Unfortunately, it was all downhill from there. Ben had other positive games for the Clippers, but none were even close to that first outing. He also missed time with a sore knee, sitting out for seven games in early-mid March. When he returned, Kawhi’s minutes restriction was fully gone, and his role was decreased. Still, Ben was in Ty Lue’s nine-man rotation entering the playoffs.

Sadly, Ben’s trend line with the Clippers repeated itself in the playoffs. He gave the Clippers legitimately helpful minutes in the first three games, playing solid defense on Jokic, providing pace on offense, and assisting on the glass. In Games 4 and 5, he was much less effective, as the Nuggets’ ignoring him on offense bogged won the Clippers’ attack to an uncomfortable degree. Ty pulled the plug in the second half of Game 5, and Ben did not play again the last 2.5 games.

Ultimately, for a buyout signing on the minimum, Ben was a fine pickup. He gave the Clippers some useful regular season and even playoff minutes and seemed to be a good locker room fit. If anything, the Clippers’ roster flaws meant pushing Ben into a larger role than he probably should have had, and he could not live up to a rotation spot in the playoffs.

Future with Clippers

It’s crazy to think Ben Simmons is not quite 29, has played just seven seasons in the NBA (he’s been in the league for nine but didn’t appear in two of them), has completed a max deal, and might well be out of the league after this year. All of the reporting out there is that the Clippers won’t bring Ben back, and honestly, it’s tough to think of teams that would want Ben. He’s a fine NBA player on a minimum deal, but he’s a uniquely tough fit and it’s very tough to talk yourself into any real upside at this point. I would guess that Ben is signed by some team to a minimum contract (Lakers?), but that it won’t be the Clippers, and they will fill the backup point guard and center spots with other players.

Clippers 2025 Exit Interviews: Ben Simmons
Robert Flom

Well, that didn’t take long – reports are already out that Ben Simmons will choose to sign with the Clippers after getting his buyout from the Nets this morning. The Clippers’ moves at the deadline – including clearing the roster spot Ben will fit into – are now truly complete.

Simmons is one of the more controversial players in the NBA, a player who shot onto the scene his first few years in the NBA and seemed like a sure-fire superstar in his early 20s. He made three All Star teams from 2019-2021 as well as earned an All-NBA Third Team selection in 2020 and two All-Defense first teams in 2020 and 2021. He was not even 25 at the end of the 2021 season.

We all know what happened after that. Ben melted down in the Sixers’ inexplicable playoff loss to the Hawks in 2021, was thrown under the bus by his coaches and teammates, and has never been quite the same since. He has cited mental health challenges as a result of that turmoil, which has caused some backlash from skeptics who have thought he was just using that as an excuse. Leaving the mental health stuff aside, a series of back injuries have also sapped his athleticism, turning him from one of the most dominant physical presences in the NBA into a role player at just 28 years old.

So, what are the Clippers getting in Ben Simmons? He averaged 6.2 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 6.9 assists for the Nets in 25 minutes per game while shooting 54.7% from the field and 69.2% from the line (0.8 attempts per game). He has not taken a single three this year. Most defensive metrics rate him as a positive, while offensive advanced stats have him as a significant negative. Ben can still score around the rim and in transition, but his extremely low free throw numbers for his size and physical tools point to his lack of aggression as a scorer in the halfcourt. Instead, Ben is much more of a pure facilitator.

Where I differ from a lot of interpretations of this move is Ben serving as the Clippers’ backup center. I think his size and rebounding will enable them to go small more easily, but in lineups alongside Nic Batum or Kawhi Leonard I think either of those players will serve more functionally as “the big man” on defense. Even in his prime, Simmons was not an effective backup big man – the Sixers tried using him to solve their endless “find a decent backup for Joel Embiid” issue and were unsuccessful. While a good rebounder, Simmons is not great at defending big men in the post, nor is he a capable shot blocker. He is far more adept at defending out on the perimeter.

Really, I think this move places Ben Simmons squarely as the Clippers’ backup point guard. The Clippers’ offense has struggled all year when James Harden is on the bench, and while Simmons rates as a well below-average individual offensive player, his playmaking, ballhandling, and ability to push the pace are all things the Clippers could use in their second unit. The question is whether his complete lack of shooting and disinterest in being any kind of scoring option in the halfcourt (he averages fewer points/36 min than Kris Dunn, who has been on an icy cold streak for half the season) keeps him as a truly viable option when games get serious. In the regular season, he should help on that end in much the same way Russell Westbrook did.

Oddly enough considering that Ben is much better on defense than offense, I have larger questions on the defensive side of the ball. Simmons can play with a big man (he started 69 of his 90 games as a Net, most of them alongside Nic Claxton) but that severely hampers the offense. Also, if both Simmons and Drew Eubanks play on the second unit, one or two real perimeter players will need to be out of the rotation. If you aren’t playing Eubanks, you’re going entirely with small-ball, and I’m still unsure of how that will hold up in a long-term setting – especially with weak perimeter defenders all over the Clippers’ rotation outside of Derrick Jones Jr. and Kris Dunn (Kawhi is a maybe right now). Additionally, it seems like it will be hard to play Kris Dunn and Simmons together, though if the other three players can all shoot maybe it could work. And if you remove Dunn from the rotation, the Clippers’ defense will see a severe negative impact regardless of what Simmons offers. While Simmons is still good on that end, he can’t guard big men and is best suited to defend wings and forwards, not point of attack. He’s just a different type of defender, albeit a useful one.

The long story short on my thoughts on the Simmons signing is that it makes sense, especially one offense, and that he has real skills that the Clippers need. However, I do think he should probably be a more limited, situational player who is used as a strict stagger with James Harden – he’s useless on offense when he doesn’t have the ball in his hands. I believe this move is a sign the Clippers are committing to small-ball in the second unit, and that Eubanks will be used mostly in situations when Ivica Zubac is in foul trouble or might be out. My biggest concern is that much like Russell Westbrook when he signed with the Clippers as a buyout guy, Ty Lue will overplay Simmons due to his pedigree. In a specific, set role of about 12-14 minutes per game, Simmons will hopefully offer organization, pace, and playmaking to a Clippers’ second unit that needs all of those things. We will just have to wait and see.

Clippers to Sign Ben Simmons
Robert Flom

Summary

The crowd was clearly revved up to start this one, and reached a jolt of adrenaline shortly into the game, when Joel Embiid got an and-one, smiled, and waved to the crowd. The Sixers had a lot to be happy about early. While their own offense looked smoother than it has lately due to Brett Brown’s adjustment to the starting lineup, their defense was as potent as ever, refusing to let the Clippers get any easy looks. The Clippers were rattled by the Sixers’ size and length, and failed to get much movement on or off the ball. Despite this, their overall play and effort was sharp, and they hung close entering the second period.

The second quarter began even worse for the Clippers. The second unit, which has been shaky for weeks, looked even more overwhelmed by the Sixers’ defense than the starters had, and Joel Embiid proved far too much for Montrezl Harrell. In a surprising (but welcome) move, Doc Rivers brought Ivica Zubac back into the game early, and order was restored. In fact, behind Zu’s defense and some hot shooting from Kawhi Leonard, the Clippers got all the way back to a tie going into halftime.

Unfortunately, while the Clippers were able to tighten up their defense, their offense did not regain the free-flowing nature it had taken during their late 2^nd quarter run. Instead, it devolved once more into isolations, with Paul George in particular struggling to get shots to drop and building frustration at the lack of foul calls. The Clippers kept the Sixers within arms reach, but were never able to put forth a real run of their own. This same seesaw battle continued into the 4^th quarter. Lou Williams briefly got cooking at the start of the quarter, while George finally got to the foul line, but the two scorers misfired after that spurt, and the Sixers moved back ahead. Every time the Clippers made a push, the Sixers responded. They were led defensively by Ben Simmons, who played a masterful game on both Paul George and Kawhi Leonard, and on offense by Josh Richardson, who torched a bevy of Clippers’ defenders in route to a 13-point 4^th quarter. The Clippers’ offense continued to sputter, and even though there was time to make a push, it clearly wasn’t going to happen. In the end, the Clippers lost 110-103 in a hard-fought but decisive defeat.

Notes

Kawhi Spectacular: While he stumbled a bit down the stretch, Kawhi Leonard was fantastic all night long. He scored 30 points on 23 shots, dished out 9 assists to 4 turnovers, and played strong defense. He was also the only Clippers player who was consistently able to create semi-open looks, utilizing his strength to make space and shoot over defenders. Ben Simmons did a good job on him early, but Kawhi was able to get his no matter who was on him, which has been the case all year. As good as his defense was early in his career, his offense is far better now, and tonight was a good demonstration as to why. His improved passing was also crucial, and he regularly operated a step ahead of the defense. It was a superstar performance. Just too bad it was on a losing effort.

Lou and PG Cold: Basketball is a simple sport. If you score a lot of baskets, you’re probably going to win. If you don’t, you’re probably going to lose. Tonight, the Clippers’ second- and third-best bucket-getters shot 8-30 from the field and 5-8 from the free throw line. Really, in most ways, that’s all there was to this game. Lou and PG were cold, they didn’t get to the free throw line, and missed shots that they’d normally make. If even four of those looks go down, this is a different game. Lou, in particular, was able to create at least decent shots for himself – they just missed. George was a bit more puzzled by the Sixers’ defense, especially Simmons, and got in his own head a bit. Cold nights are a fact of life in the NBA, but two from key players on the same night usually means doom.

Marcus Morris Pro and Cons: This was a pretty typical Marcus Morris game. He made some tough shots, took some awful, contested attempts, and tried starting a fight with Joel Embiid. As per usual with Morris, there was a mix of both good and bad stirred into the pot. On the good: he shot 3-6 from three, more makes and attempts than Moe Harkless would see over multiple games. He also played hard, and gave some tough fouls. For the bad: he took some ridiculously bone-headed shots, isolating on Al Horford several times to take contested midrange jumpers early in the shot clock. There was a particularly infuriating attempt coming in the late 4^th quarter with the Clips trying to mount a comeback that is unfortunately something we will probably see a lot over the coming months. At age 30, and with a decade in the NBA, Morris is who he is. He can make tough shots, and is a dangerous weapon when hot, but he will also make plenty of frustrating decisions on both ends of the court.

Shamet Remains Hot: Landry Shamet has surged in 2020, and continued on his streak tonight, as he shot 7-11 from the field and 5-9 from three. The Clippers look much more potent offensively when he’s in the game, and it’s a bit puzzling why he didn’t start the game on the court. He’s not as good a ball-handler or playmaker as Lou Williams, but with Kawhi and PG handling the ball so much anyway, that’s not as important. Landry got 36 minutes, which is great, but it’s possible he could have had even more playing time (or had it in better stretches) to help keep the Clippers’ offense juiced. Nonetheless, Shamet turning the corner in recent weeks has been a great, great occurrence.

Clippers Fall to Sixers 110-103 in High-Quality, Tightly-Contested Game
Robert Flom