![\"Slovenia](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/slovenia-v-japan-mens-basketball-olympics-day-6-saitama-japan-e1788009372352.jpg\")
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SAITAMA, JAPAN – JULY 29: Luka Doncic #77 of Team Slovenia smiles from the bench against Japan during the second half of a Men’s Preliminary Round Group C game on day six of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Saitama Super Arena on July 29, 2021 in Saitama, Japan. (Photo by Gregory Shamus\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n
It may be the dog days of the NBA<\/a> offseason, but the Los Angeles Lakers<\/a> are still far from finished business.\u00a0<\/p>\n By league rule, the Lakers must trim their roster to get at or below the 15-man limit. L.A. currently has 16 players on its roster, with speculation suggesting that either Bronny James<\/a> or Dalton Knecht<\/a> could be the odd man out.<\/p>\n In addition to cutting down on players, the Lakers will likely still have to address at least one of two glaring holes on their roster. The team still needs a starting power forward and someone to back up newly-acquired star center Walker Kessler<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n Of course, a major Lakers plan went off the rails recently when, let\u2019s just refer to him as that guy, spurned L.A and signed with the rival Minnesota Timberwolves<\/a>. Now the team is left having to make use of the free agents who are still available or perhaps a trade, which would be the far better option.<\/p>\n If Not a Trade to Beef Up the Frontcourt, Could the Lakers Add This Free Agent?<\/p>\n \n If L.A. isn\u2019t able to work out a trade with anyone, which is possible given its limited draft capital, who could be a free agent target? According to Jacob Rude of Silver Screen and Roll one option might be former All-Star Ben Simmons<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cNow we\u2019re getting into the wild card options,\u201d Rude wrote. \u201cThis one is very unlikely for multiple reasons, but he is the most attainable option so far. But this feels more like a last-resort move. Simmons looked a shell of himself two seasons ago and he spent last year fishing and not playing basketball. Giving him a training camp invite and a chance to show himself might be in the cards. However, it\u2019s not a move that would inspire much confidence or belief.\u201d<\/p>\n Simmons, 30, hasn\u2019t appeared in an NBA game since the 2024-25 season, where he suited up 18 times for the Los Angeles Clippers. In L.A., Simmons averaged 2.9 points, 3.8 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game.\u00a0<\/p>\n Once upon a time, Simmons was viewed as one of the top young players in the league, someone good enough that he actually had Fox Sports\u2019 Colin Cowherd bidding farewell to LeBron James<\/a> after James had just completed one of his most dominant individual seasons.\u00a0<\/p>\n Simmons, of course, never was the same after his last season with the Philadelphia 76ers<\/a>, who selected the 6\u201910\u201d point-center with the top pick in the 2016 NBA Draft.\u00a0<\/p>\n Simmons Registering on Teams\u2019 Radar<\/p>\n Nearly 1 \u00bd years since his last game \u2014 Game 5 between the Clippers and Nuggets in the first round of the 2025 NBA playoffs \u2014 Simmons is targeting a comeback.<\/p>\n Earlier this month, league insider Marc J. Spears reported that multiple teams had eyes on Simmons.<\/p>\n \u201cSeveral NBA teams have expressed interest in Simmons, who is open to signing a minimum contract, according to sources,\u201d Spears said. \u201cOne source said he has a non-guaranteed offer on the table for minicamp with a Western Conference team.\u201d<\/p>\n Recently, Simmons caught the attention of Sacramento Kings<\/a> general manager Scott Perry, who recently watched Simmons go through a workout in Florida.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cSactown Sports is now officially reporting that Sacramento Kings general manager Scott Perry is in Florida \u2026 (for) Ben Simmons,\u201d Kings reporter Carmichael Dave said. \u201cHe could be one of 30 people. I don\u2019t know the details. I just know they\u2019re in the same place, at the same time. We\u2019ve all been waiting for this moment. Could it finally be happening? \u2026 Dare I say he\u2019s working out for the Kings? He could be working out for a lot of people.\u201d<\/p>\n Simmons had become a journeyman in the NBA when he last played. Will that change if he makes a comeback?\u00a0<\/p>\n At nearly seven feet tall, Simmons was an impressive passer and transition player, even as he regressed into a role player. A three-time All-Star and two-time All-Defensive performer, Simmons did enough in the NBA for a team to give him another chance.\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tAdel Ahmad<\/a> Adel is a writer with over five years of experience covering the NBA. His work has appeared on various media platforms, both national and local. More about Adel Ahmad<\/a>\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Getty SAITAMA, JAPAN – JULY 29: Luka Doncic #77 of Team Slovenia smiles from the bench against Japan…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":872975,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[557],"tags":[64,63,590,85],"class_list":["post-872974","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nba","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-nba","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/872974","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=872974"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/872974\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/872975"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=872974"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=872974"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=872974"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"Denver](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/denver-nuggets-v-los-angeles-clippers-game-four-inglewood-california.jpg\")
GettyINGLEWOOD, CALIFORNIA \u2013 APRIL 26: Ben Simmons<\/a> #25 of the LA Clippers<\/a> dunks during the first quarter in Game Four of the Western Conference First Round NBA Playoffs against the Denver Nuggets<\/a> at Intuit Dome on April 26, 2025 in Inglewood, California. (Photo by Ronald Martinez\/Getty Images)\n<\/p>\n