Former three-time All-Star guard Ben Simmons remains unsigned over two months into free agency.
Simmons hasn’t looked like his Philadelphia 76ers self since forcing his way off the team in 2021-22. He wound up sitting out that entire season between his time in Philadelphia and Brooklyn, first due to mental health problems and later as the result of a debilitating lower back injury.
Ben Simmons #25 of the Los Angeles Clippers pulls down a rebound in the third quarter against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden on March 26, 2025 in New York City. The Clippers…
Ben Simmons #25 of the Los Angeles Clippers pulls down a rebound in the third quarter against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden on March 26, 2025 in New York City. The Clippers won 126-113.
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After negotiating a buyout with the Nets this year, he latched on with the L.A. Clippers — only to fall out of the team’s rotation in the playoffs. Still a solid, versatile defender, if not quite his prime All-Defensive self, Simmons’ offensive game has collapsed, to the point where his teams often look like they’re playing four-on-five on that end of the hardwood when he plays.
The 6-foot-10 LSU product and his longtime agent, Bernie Lee, parted ways earlier this month, according to Marc Stein of Substack’s The Stein Line.
As Ben Simmons decides his next career steps, I’m told Bernie Lee has notified @TheNBPA that he has formally removed himself from the union’s ledger as Simmons’ agent.
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) September 4, 2025
Simmons has been attempting to represent himself in the intervening weeks, although he has also been said to be mulling retirement.
Now, the two-time All-Defensive Teamer appears to have hit a roadblock as he continues to semi-pursue his next chapter.
More news: Knicks Insider Shuts Down Recent Ben Simmons Report, Reigniting Speculation
Per Evan Sidery of Forbes, the 29-year-old vet has gotten nary a nibble from any team.
There is currently no interest from teams in signing Ben Simmons, who is now representing himself after his agent left this offseason.
It appears very likely Simmons will open the 2025-26 NBA season without a team.
Retirement could become a real possibility for the 29-year-old. pic.twitter.com/I4t3WGDhvH
— Evan Sidery (@esidery) September 12, 2025
“There is currently no interest from teams in signing Ben Simmons, who is now representing himself after his agent left this offseason,” Sidery writes.
“It appears very likely Simmons will open the 2025-26 NBA season without a team,” Sidery notes. “Retirement could become a real possibility for the 29-year-old.”
Across 51 healthy games for the Nets and Clippers this past season (24 starts, all with Brooklyn), Simmons averaged 5.0 points on 52 percent shooting from the floor and 72.27 percent shooting from the charity stripe (albeit on a scant 0.6 attempts), plus 5.6 assists, 4.7 rebounds, 0.7 steals and 0.5 blocks per. Hardly All-Star numbers.
There’s always something of a roster crunch when it comes to veterans over the summer.
As of now, nine-time All-Star and 2017 MVP Russell Westbrook remains unsigned, and talented vets Malcolm Brogdon (the Sixth Man of the Year just two years ago), Landry Shamet, and Garrison Mathews could all be competing for one roster spot with the New York Knicks — although it’s rumored that New York is considering a trade to free up two roster spots for those those three players. All of those players will have far more offensive upside in 2025-26 than Ben Simmons.
Given that Simmons is a native of Melbourne, Australia, one wonders (in a purely speculative sense) if he might wrap up his pro career with that country’s National Basketball League, a fairly competitive international circuit that often employs future or former NBA talent.
More news: NBA Executive Believes 29-Year-Old All-Star’s Career is Over
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