After trading Mikal Bridges in exchange for a godfather offer of draft picks, the Nets have made their direction clear. They're taking an immediate step back to build for a brighter future.
Is Simmons a part of that future? He's entering his age 28 season on an expiring $40.3 million contract. He has managed only 57 games over the past three seasons and nobody is trading for him with the idea that he will be worth that salary.
Even so, Simmons does have some value as a way for other teams to offload their even worse, longer-term deals in exchange for draft picks. That is exactly the type of trade that the Nets are trying to pursue, per HoopsHype's Mike Scotto. And if he is healthy, Simmons was at one point an All-Star and First Team All-Defensive player. There is some outside chance that he returns to that level.
Here are the types of deals that might make sense for Simmons.
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Ben Simmons landing spots
Bulls
The Bulls have been desperate to offload the remaining three years and $138 million of Zach LaVine's contract. Even attaching a first-round pick hasn't been enough to entice any teams, per ESPN's Bobby Marks.
A LaVine-Simmons swap would cut more than $2 million in salary for the Bulls and get rid of their problem. Chicago has a first-round pick from Portland that may not convey, along with its own picks in 2027, 2029 and 2031 available to move.
One of those picks would be a nice swap for Simmons, who could help teach fellow Australian point guard Josh Giddey some tricks.
Jazz
The Jazz had some of the weakest point guard play in the league last year. Rookie Keyonte George tried to fill the role admirably but is more of a shooting guard prospect. Kris Dunn revitalized his career but is more of a high-end bench player. Simmons could be a great buy-low candidate for the team.
The Jazz have their own big contract that they would be happy to unload in John Collins' $53 million due over the next two years. Trading for Simmons would allow them to get out of that Collins deal a year early and also take a very small risk on a potentially high upside.
Utah has cap space available, so it could make this type of uneven-salary trade and roll its cap space into next summer.
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Warriors
Andrew Wiggins has been a big disappointment since signing his four-year, $109 million extension with the Warriors. They've reportedly been shopping him, looking to get off the last three years of his deal.
Simmons would allow the Warriors to get off that bad money earlier. He and Draymond Green could also form a fearsome defensive duo if he could get his health right. The offensive fit would be messy, but nobody would be scoring on those two.
The Warriors would have to send out more salary in addition to Wiggins to make this type of deal work. They could include a promising young prospect like Moses Moody, along with Kevon Looney's expiring deal.
Spurs
San Antonio already shored up its point guard play after acquiring Chris Paul, but he can't be counted on to play huge minutes at his age anymore. Could Simmons be a capable backup? He could certainly set up Victor Wembanyama better than the players the Spurs had on their roster last year.
The Spurs still have $24 million in cap space available, so they could make an uneven-salary trade just like the Jazz. They inked Zach Collins to a two-year, $35 million contract extension last summer that looks horrendous in retrospect. Swapping Simmons and Collins could work. It would save the Nets some money in the immediate future.
The Spurs would get a free look at Simmons while getting off Collins' deal a year early. San Antonio might need to include a small draft asset to make this worth it for Brooklyn.
