Ben Simmons: From NBA Star to Fishing Champion — and the Comeback You Didn’t See Coming

A Morning on the Water

It’s almost 11 a.m. on a sticky May morning in Miami. Ben Simmons — yes, that Ben Simmons, the 6’10" former NBA superstar — has been out on the ocean since 6:15 a.m. He’s been casting his fishing rod over and over, watching the water, waiting. So far, the catch has been modest: a bar jack, a wahoo he’ll cook up later, and a tiny mahimahi too small to keep.

He sits back in the air-conditioned cabin of his 53-foot Scout boat, feet up, hands resting calm in his lap.

"Any moment, something can happen."

And that’s exactly what he loves about fishing. The peace. The surprise. The feeling that you have to stay alert and ready, because you never know when the next big moment is going to strike.

A few minutes later — right on cue — the captain’s line goes tight. Simmons springs out of his seat in one smooth motion, grabs the rod, and reels in a barracuda. It’s not bad for eating, but it carries a risk of a nasty food poisoning called ciguatera, and honestly, as Simmons puts it, it "smells like shit." Back into the water it goes. But Simmons is laughing, energized, and fully alive.

"I’m back, I’m back," he chuckles.

It’s good to see him smile. And it’s good to see him move freely — with that rare blend of size, speed, and court vision that once made him one of the most exciting young basketball players on the planet. On this particular day, though, it had been 379 days since Simmons last stepped onto an NBA court.

The Rise: Australia to the Very Top

Growing Up Down Under

Ben Simmons grew up in Newcastle, Australia — a coastal city in New South Wales. His dad, Dave, was a Bronx native who played pro basketball for the Melbourne Tigers. His mom, Julie, is Australian. Ben was the youngest of six kids, and according to his godfather, David Patrick, he was always the mischievous one.

"If something went missing, it was probably Ben."

The first memory Ben has of fishing? He was about seven years old, casting off a jetty at a local dog beach, using prawns and shrimp as bait.

When people in Australia looked at a 14- or 15-year-old Ben — who was already 6’8" — they thought he might make a decent local career. The NBA? That seemed like a fantasy.

"No one was thinking that — that’s not a thought when you’re in Australia," his godfather recalls.

The Talent That Changed Everything

But American scouts saw something different. After watching a teenage Ben play at a camp in California, they were blown away. He had:

• Size and strength bigger than almost everyone his age
• Speed and athleticism usually seen in much smaller players
• Vision — the ability to think three moves ahead, like a chess grandmaster
• Defensive versatility — he could guard anyone, and almost no one could guard him

By the time he was a junior at Montverde Academy in Florida (a famous basketball prep school), he was the most talked-about prospect in the entire country. People started comparing him to LeBron James and Magic Johnson.

Important Note: Simmons never developed a reliable jump shot or three-point shot. This would become a huge problem later — but more on that in a moment.

The Number One Pick

In 2016, Simmons was selected #1 overall in the NBA Draft by the Philadelphia 76ers. He broke his foot right before his first season and missed the entire year. But when he finally debuted in 2017–2018, he mostly lived up to the hype:

• He helped turn the 76ers from the 4th worst record in the league to the 5th best
• He won Rookie of the Year
• He became the 2nd fastest player in NBA history to reach 2,000 points, 1,000 rebounds, and 1,000 assists — behind only Oscar Robertson
• He was named an NBA All-Star for three straight seasons

Radio host Colin Cowherd famously declared: "Hey, LeBron, Ben Simmons is here, we’re all good."

The future looked absolutely golden.

The Fall: Injury, Pain, and the Dunk That Never Happened

The Back Injury

In February 2020, Simmons hurt his back during a game against the Milwaukee Bucks. The pain was so severe he vomited. When the season resumed after the COVID shutdown, he partially dislocated his kneecap. His season was over.

Simmons has described his back injury like this:

Think of it like charging your phone with a finicky cord. Any sudden movement, any change in angle, and you lose the power. That’s what his back felt like.

And here’s the thing — even after the physical tissue healed, the pain kept coming. That’s because the injury involved his nerves, which meant his entire nervous system was affected. He couldn’t walk around normally. Basic basketball moves — grabbing a rebound, dunking, playing defense, being physical — all became incredibly difficult.

The Dunk He Passed Up

In the 2021 playoffs, the 76ers faced the Atlanta Hawks. In the critical Game 7, with about 3:30 left and his team down by two, Simmons had a chance at an open, game-tying dunk.

Instead of dunking, he passed the ball to a teammate, who got fouled. The teammate missed one of two free throws, and the 76ers lost.

That one moment — a split-second decision — changed the entire rest of his career.

Fans were furious. His own teammate (Joel Embiid) and coach publicly criticized him. The media tore him apart. Simmons has since said that, in hindsight, he should have just dunked it.

"I just gave it to somebody who was shooting a higher percentage free throw at the time," Simmons says now, laughing about it with that teammate. "But he didn’t [make it], and it is what it is. That’s still my boy. I love the guy."

The Jump Shot Problem

This moment intensified frustrations that had been building for years. Simmons has made only five three-pointers in his entire NBA career. The average distance of all his career shot attempts? Just 4.4 feet from the basket — even closer than Shaquille O’Neal’s average.

During the regular season, his other talents could make up for this weakness. But in the playoffs, when every possession matters, opposing teams would literally back off and dare him to shoot. He wouldn’t, and it hurt his team.

The Standoff with Philadelphia

Before the 2021–2022 season, Simmons asked for a trade. The 76ers couldn’t find a deal they liked, so they kept him. What followed was one of the most dramatic standoffs in sports history:

1. Simmons didn’t show up for training camp
2. The 76ers stopped paying him (withholding $8.25 million at one point)
3. Simmons said he wasn’t mentally ready to play
4. The Sixers fined him nearly $20 million total
5. Simmons filed a grievance and eventually settled for an undisclosed amount
6. He refused to meet with the team’s mental health specialists

Many people called him "soft." ESPN commentator Stephen A. Smith called him "the weakest, most pathetic excuse for a professional athlete we have ever seen."

Important Point: Simmons says people had no idea how much pain he was in. He didn’t want to make excuses, and he didn’t have the energy to explain himself to everyone. "People are gonna make up whatever they want anyway."

Trades, Surgeries, and More Pain

In February 2022, Simmons was traded to the Brooklyn Nets. He re-aggravated his back almost immediately and missed the rest of that season. He had his first surgery (a microdiscectomy — a procedure to relieve pressure on the pinched nerve in his back). Over the next three seasons, he played only 108 out of 246 regular season games, had a second surgery, and eventually signed with the Los Angeles Clippers.

Despite playing 51 games in the 2024–2025 season and looking healthy from the outside, Simmons says he was in constant, severe pain.

"People have no idea. I couldn’t walk around."

Finding Himself Again: Fishing, Ownership, and a New Chapter

Why Fishing?

Ben has loved fishing since he was a kid. But during the most turbulent years of his career — the injuries, the public humiliation, the constant criticism — fishing became something more than a hobby. It became his escape and his therapy.

Out on the water, nobody’s yelling at him. Nobody’s analyzing his shot. Nobody’s asking why he didn’t dunk.

Captain Ray, who’s been guiding Simmons on fishing trips for years, says Ben is one of the most determined fishers he’s ever seen:

"He’ll jog up to that bow 5,000 times. Even if he doesn’t get a bite, he’ll do it, and do it, and do it."

Simmons puts it simply:

"When I’m on that boat, I’m trying to learn as much as I can every time."

A Big Decision: Sitting Out the 2025–2026 Season

In February 2025, the Brooklyn Nets bought out his massive five-year, $177 million contract. After a half-season with the Clippers, Simmons made a bold choice: he decided to opt out of the entire 2025–2026 NBA season.

"What if I wanna take some time for myself and put myself in the best position to play [again)]? I was like, you know what? Fuck it. If it doesn’t work, it doesn’t work. But this is what feels right."

Buying a Fishing Team

Then, in December 2025, Simmons did something nobody expected: he purchased majority ownership of the South Florida Sails Angling Club, a professional fishing team that competes in the Sport Fishing Championship (think of it like the PGA Tour or Formula 1, but for fishing).

The internet exploded with reactions. Was he done with basketball for good? Was he just coasting? Was this a retirement announcement?

For Simmons, it was about three things:

• Bringing attention to a sport he loves
• Building something of his own, on his own terms
• Stepping away from the spotlight that had been crushing him

"I needed to get away, and have some space, and just find myself again."

The Big Win

In May 2026, the South Florida Sails — with Simmons on the boat as a spotter and team member — competed in a three-day tournament at Walker’s Cay in the Bahamas. Working the tower and calling out fish sightings, Simmons helped his team land six blue marlin (each worth 450 points), racking up 2,925 total points and winning by a large margin.

The news made ESPN. Some fans joked he’d finally won his championship. Others revisited the 2021 dunk debate. But many were just… happy for him.

"Who would’ve thought we’d be on ESPN for some fishing?" Simmons said laughing.

The Comeback Plan

Getting His Body Right

When the reporter caught up with Simmons next, he was in Los Angeles seeing specialists for his back and knee. For the first time in years, he says he’s feeling genuinely great.

"You kind of fall into [pain] just being a normal thing, and then you’re like, Oh, wow, like this is how I really should be feeling. So it’s cool to feel that now."

His training plan during this time away from the NBA:

1. 2.5–3 hours of lifting and body work per session
2. 1.5 hours of on-court basketball work per session
3. A day or two of rest each week
4. Goal: be at full strength by his 30th birthday — July 20, 2026

Will He Return to the NBA?

Simmons is now an unrestricted free agent, meaning any team can sign him. When asked directly if he plans to play in the NBA next year, his answer is clear:

"I plan on getting as strong as I can physically, getting my ass on the court, and then the team realizing that my abilities will be needed."

He doesn’t care which team it is. He’s even open to returning to Philadelphia — the city where everything fell apart. He’s expressed interest in Miami too, not because of the city, but because he respects the Heat organization and coach Erik Spoelstra.

He’s been talking to NBA coaches who told him: get healthy first, and if you’re healthy, you have a spot.

"You can’t teach 6’10" and IQ," he says. "When I’m out there, I make everybody better. I play defense. I get offensive rebounds."

On Pressure and Confidence

Does he feel pressure to make this comeback successful?

"Nah, there’s no pressure. I had pressure when I was injured… People are gonna say the same thing every single time. All right, well, if that’s what you think, then that’s what you think."

And on the question of confidence — which has followed him for years:

"So many people speak about confidence. If I was not confident, I would not get on the court again, I would not go to the Clippers, I wouldn’t play in Brooklyn. It’s health. It’s just being healthy."

Why Go Back At All?

If he’s finally at peace, feeling good, and winning fishing tournaments — why return to the NBA?

"I think this is just what I’m choosing to do, like, no one’s forcing me. It’s never been about, do I love playing basketball? That’s never a question. That’s in my DNA. I think sometimes you get over all the bullshit that comes with it, though."

And if he could go back and do anything differently?

"Nah, I’m Ben Simmons. I just gotta keep doing what Ben Simmons wants to do."

Summary

Ben Simmons’s story is one of the most dramatic in modern sports:

• Rise: A kid from Australia became the #1 NBA draft pick, a 3-time All-Star, and one of the most talented players in the world
• Fall: A devastating back injury, a career-defining missed dunk, a bitter standoff with his team, public humiliation, and years of chronic pain
• Reinvention: He stepped away from basketball, bought a professional fishing team, won a championship, and found peace on the water
• Return: Now 29 (turning 30 in July 2026), healthy for the first time in years, and planning an NBA comeback — on his own terms

His godfather puts it best:

"Everybody thinks that Ben should’ve been LeBron or should’ve been Magic… But if you could’ve told me when he was 15 that he’d be the #1 high school player, the #1 pick, a 3-time All-Star, Rookie of the Year — is that not enough?"

Maybe the question isn’t what Ben Simmons should have been. Maybe it’s about appreciating what he is — and what he’s still becoming.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Why did Ben Simmons stop playing basketball?
A: Simmons has been dealing with a severe back injury involving a pinched nerve that caused chronic pain in his back, glutes, and legs. After years of surgeries and flare-ups, he decided to sit out the 2025–2026 season to fully heal and reset his nervous system.

Q: What is ciguatera?
A: Ciguatera is a type of food poisoning you can get from eating certain reef fish (like barracuda) that have accumulated toxins from algae in the food chain. It can cause nausea, vomiting, and neurological symptoms. That’s why Simmons threw the barracuda back!

Q: Did Ben Simmons really only make five three-pointers in his NBA career?
A: Yes. Despite playing primarily as a point guard, Simmons has made only five three-pointers in his entire NBA career. His average shot attempt is just 4.4 feet from the basket — one of the shortest averages in modern NBA history.

Q: What is the Sport Fishing Championship (SFC)?
A: The SFC is a professional fishing league where teams compete in tournaments to catch the most and biggest fish. Think of it like the PGA Tour or Formula 1, but for sport fishing. Simmons purchased majority ownership of the South Florida Sails team in late 2025.

Q: Will Ben Simmons play in the NBA again?
A: As of this writing, Simmons says he plans to. He’s training in Miami, working to get his body to full strength by his 30th birthday (July 20, 2026), and says he’s been in contact with NBA coaches who want him — as long as he’s healthy. He’s an unrestricted free agent, so any team can sign him.