The 2022-23 NBA season is only three weeks old but the Brooklyn Nets have already packed multiple seasons’ worth of drama into it. The offseason was a tumultuous one as both Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving explored leaving the franchise, but once they both agreed to stay with the franchise, the drama subsided but it didn’t take long to pick up again.
Brooklyn is currently 4-6, which led to head coach Steve Nash and the Nets agreeing to part ways. Somehow, that is far from the most headlining-grabbing thing that has occurred in the last week or so. The person that they are looking to replace him is currently suspended Boston Celtics head coach, Ime Udoka, which is headlining grabbing in its own right.
Irving has once again made headlines for all of the wrong reasons after sharing anti-semitic videos on his social media account. He was given numerous chances to take them down and apologize but refused to. That led to the Nets suspending him for at least five games.
Jacque Vaughn has taken over as the team’s acting head coach in the meantime and he will have some decisions to make with the team being short-handed. In addition to Irving being suspended, Seth Curry is still recovering from offseason ankle surgery and Ben Simmons is now sidelined as well.
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Simmons is dealing with a knee injury and will miss at least two more games. His inability to stay on the court is something that is already frustrating people within the organization. Kevin Durant is one player that Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN has expressed frustrations with Simmons.
“Ben Simmons has been a source of frustration for Kevin Durant, for others on the Nets so far, because he’s been unable to stay on the floor, but prior to that, he has shown that he’s a long way away from being back to an impactful player.”
Simmons’ inability to stay on could be about not being able to remain healthy, but it could also be in reference to his high rate of fouling. Simmons is averaging 4.3 fouls per game, fouling out twice and committing at least four in all but one of his six appearances.
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He has all of the potential in the world given his combination of size and skill. However, after missing the entire 2021-22 season, Simmons is certainly rusty and needs some time to get back into rhythm playing with a new team.
Will he be able to realize that potential with the Nets? While they were adamant about not trading him during the offseason, it sounds like their patience is already running thin as the team is digging themselves a very deep hole to climb out of.
