Ben Simmons is back in the NBA. The three-time All-Star has agreed to a one-year, $3.5 million deal with the Sacramento Kings, giving him a path back into the league after sitting out the entire 2025-26 season.
ESPN’s Shams Charania reported: “Just in: Three-time All-Star Ben Simmons has agreed on a one-year, $3.5 million deal with the Sacramento Kings, his agents Max Wiepking, Sean Tribe and Ryan Arney tell me and @MarcJSpears. The one-time All-NBA star is back in the NBA for a 10th season after sitting out 2025-26.”
The move also sets up Simmons’ return to Philadelphia. After his career with the 76ers ended following the fallout from the 2021 playoff loss to Atlanta and his eventual 2022 trade to Brooklyn, Simmons will now face his former team twice as a King. In June, Simmons told Men’s Health, “Maybe I’ll go back to Philly. Miami would be nice…” Now, Sacramento is giving him the opportunity to make his NBA return.
For Simmons, the move is less about a return to the team where he began his career and more about getting back on an NBA court. ESPN reported that Sacramento was the only team to offer him a contract, while other teams expressed interest that could have led to training-camp opportunities. The Kings saw Simmons as a low-risk veteran addition with the ability to handle the ball, defend multiple positions and help rookie point guard Darius Acuff Jr.
Simmons arrived in Philadelphia as the No. 1 overall pick in 2016 and became a three-time All-Star and All-NBA selection with the Sixers. But his relationship with the franchise broke down after Philadelphia’s seven-game loss to the Atlanta Hawks in the 2021 Eastern Conference semifinals.
After the series, Doc Rivers was asked whether Simmons could be the point guard on a championship team. Rivers replied, “I don’t know how to answer that right now.” Joel Embiid also pointed to Simmons’ decision not to attack the basket late in Game 7 as a turning point. Simmons later requested a trade and stayed away from the team before Philadelphia sent him to Brooklyn on February 10, 2022, in the James Harden trade.
Simmons’ return comes after a full season away from the NBA while he dealt with lingering back and leg issues. He told Men’s Health in June that he needed to “get away” and “find myself again,” while also saying, “I plan on getting as strong as I can physically, getting my ass on the court.” He then participated in an Australian national-team players-only minicamp in August before working out for Sacramento.
Sacramento’s interest also gave Simmons a clear route back into the league. The Kings had been looking for veteran help at point guard and viewed the 30-year-old as a low-risk addition behind rookie Darius Acuff Jr. Simmons can also bring size, playmaking and defensive versatility to a team that finished 22-60 last season.
Simmons will face Philadelphia twice in his first season back. The Kings will host the 76ers on December 29 at Golden 1 Center before Philadelphia hosts Sacramento on January 27 at Xfinity Mobile Arena.
Simmons now gets a chance to write a very different chapter of his career. His return will begin in Sacramento, but two of the most closely watched games on his schedule will come against the franchise where his NBA career first took off — and where it eventually fell apart.