Ben Simmons' NBA Comeback: Draymond Green Weighs In

Draymond Green has seen enough broken bodies and battered careers to know a comeback when he sees one. Ben Simmons, once a franchise cornerstone and then a cautionary tale, is back in the NBA, and Green is all in on the revival.

The Sacramento Kings have handed Simmons a one-year, $3.5 million lifeline after watching him grind through offseason workouts, and Green made it clear on "The Draymond Green Show" that this is a story worth rooting for.

“Number one, I'm happy to see Ben Simmons back in the NBA,” Green said, framing Simmons not as a reclamation project, but as a rare talent the league has been missing. A 6-foot-10 guard with elite vision and defensive instincts doesn’t just appear every draft cycle. When that kind of player disappears, you feel the void.

Simmons didn’t play a single game last season. He hit free agency with a damaged back, a damaged reputation, and time on his hands. He used it to heal. The lingering back issues that began during his Philadelphia 76ers days had stripped him of his explosiveness, his confidence, and eventually his place on an NBA roster.

Green didn’t gloss over that. He tied Simmons’ decline directly to his health, pointing out that the back problems that wiped out his 2021-22 season never really let go. For three years, the former All-Star was a shell of himself, and Green knows what that does to a player’s head as much as his body. Back injuries don’t just limit movement; they drain belief. They sit with you in every step, every jump, every doubt.

To Green, that’s what makes this return different. He spoke about a recent conversation with Simmons and zeroed in on one word: excited. Excited to play. Excited to compete. Excited to be back in the fight. That, to a veteran like Green, is the telltale sign that this isn’t just another stopgap contract.

The Kings, though, are not bringing Simmons in to be a locker-room sage. They’re betting on his game, on the possibility that a healthy version of him can still tilt possessions and influence winning. Green sees another layer.

He sees Darius Acuff Jr.

Sacramento used the No. 7 pick on the dynamic young guard, and Green believes Simmons’ presence could be a turning point in Acuff’s development.

“When I look at this signing, I think this is great for Darius Acuff,” Green said. In his eyes, Simmons is not just trying to fix his own narrative; he’s about to become a living blueprint for a rookie guard entering a league that can chew up and spit out young talent in a season.

“You have a Ben Simmons who's eager to make it right, he's going to give you the game. And he's going to work his ass off,” Green added. That’s the edge. A veteran not coasting on past accolades, but clawing for relevance again. A former All-NBA player who’s seen the peak and the plunge, now sharing that perspective with a teenager trying to find his footing.

Green also pointed to something subtler, but just as important: attention. Simmons, for better or worse, still draws it. From fans. From media. From every arena he walks into. That spotlight, Green suggested, can act as a shield for Acuff. While the cameras track every Simmons possession, the rookie gets space to grow, to make mistakes, to learn without every misstep turning into a headline.

“Let’s face it, Ben Simmons is Ben Simmons,” Green said. The name still carries weight. So does the possibility.

The Kings have taken a calculated risk on a player who once looked like the future of the league. Green, who has spent his career dissecting what winning basketball really looks like, sees value beyond the box score: a versatile defender, a playmaker, a veteran with something to prove, and a mentor by necessity as much as design.

If Simmons’ back holds and his mind stays clear, Sacramento might have found more than just depth. They might have found the kind of redemption story that can change not only one career, but quietly shape the beginning of another.