Ben Simmons tore his right Achilles tendon during a Kings practice, ending his season before it really began and knocking a rare comeback story off course just as it was taking shape. The injury, reported on Sunday, cuts short a return that had only recently started to look real.
That is why Simmons is being searched now. The 30-year-old had gone completely unsigned through the 2025-26 season before joining the Sacramento Kings on the veteran minimum, and he had just given the club something to watch in last week's preseason blowout loss to the San Antonio Spurs, finishing with 14 points, eight rebounds, seven assists and four made free throws. For a team that had been getting a surprising preseason storyline, that kind of production made him more than a name on the roster.
Simmons had also spent the previous year away from basketball. At Kings media day, he said he did not touch a ball for the whole year and did not watch basketball, focusing instead on getting his body right and his mind right. The line matched the shape of his comeback: patient, guarded, and built around the idea that if he could get healthy enough, he could still matter on an NBA floor.
The fragility of that plan is what makes this injury sting. He had been back just long enough to show flashes, and then the Achilles tear wiped out the optimism in one practice. His past back surgeries had already taken a toll on the athleticism that once defined him, and now the latest injury leaves the Kings without the veteran minimum flier they had hoped might help them hold together a rough season.
Simmons responded Sunday night on Instagram story by calling the injury another chapter in his journey, not the end of his story, and said adversity does not define you, how you respond to it does. He added that he has been knocked down before and always found a way to get back up. The next step is recovery, and Achilles tears usually do not invite quick returns; for Simmons, the season is already gone, and the question now is not whether he plays this year but whether he can build enough health to try again.
