It’s almost as if Derrick Jones Jr. landed in LA to shut down Ben Simmons! The 6-season experienced forward has had a frustrating hoops career so far, dealing with a persistent back injury. After missing out on 67 games last season, the Australian finally returned to court in the Brooklyn Nets‘ preseason opener against the LA Clippers. With all eyes on him, Simmons went on to make his first bucket, but things didn’t go the way he expected. Well, it wasn’t just Derrick who spoiled Ben’s plans, but also big man Ivica Zubac!

Down 8 in the first few minutes, with the Nets looking to open their account, the 3x All-Star ran down the lane for a reverse lay-up. And Zubac showed no mercy, as he slapped the ball out of Simmons’ hands. After a few seconds in the very next possession, the 28-year-old again had an opportunity to shoot a jumper from the baseline. This time, it was Jones who denied the bucket from behind.

Even though the forward’s timely block happened in less than a second, a spot-on snap from an NBA photographer captured the spectacular moment forever. Truly leaving a stain on Ben Simmons’ return.

Ben Simmons deserves a break! Looking back at the path he has traveled, it was totally tumultuous. Coming into the league as 1st pick in the 2016 Draft and missed the entire season with a broken bone. He returned the very next season and won the Rookie of the Year award in 2018. However, since then, it has been a downward spiral, dealing with knee and back injuries, and missing a major chunk of games in all seasons, including an entire season in 2021-22. Nevertheless, many haven’t lost hope yet, along with an NBA legend.

Carmelo Anthony roots for Ben Simmons’ hoops revival!

In the last few off-seasons, workout videos of Ben Simmons have surfaced online, giving hope to the fans, only for an injury waiting to happen later in the year. The same pattern of viral media reports and videos followed this off-season as well. Several reports claimed Ben Simmons was playing 5-on-5 scrimmages and videos of him shooting threes popped up once in a while. But, this time, it’s different. Especially after the Aussie baller received a special acknowledgment from Carmelo Anthony.

In an interview with Sporting News, Melo said, “We need him to come back…We want to see him, we want to support him. We don’t want to see you on the sidelines, we want to see you playing… We want to see you working, we know your talent, we know your skill-set and now it’s time to focus on your body and get back out there.” It’s truly coming from a basketball fan rather than an NBA legend. So this could be it.

Moreover, Ben Simmons’ teammate Dorian Finney-Smith shared a promising statement, regarding the forward’s return ahead of the preseason. He added, “People don’t know how healthy Ben is going to be…I feel like it’s gonna help our team a lot, and we’re going to shake the NBA.”

So, as basketball fans, we’ve to trust these words and anticipate a strong comeback from the promising talent. In September, HC Jordi Fernandez also confirmed that Ben Simmons had a “very good summer” and seemed in a much better position after just playing a saddening total of 57 NBA games across the last three seasons. After undergoing two different surgeries in the same timeframe, including a microscopic partial discectomy on March 14, do you think the hooper will bounce back for good this time? Let us know.

Before leaving, do watch the Dual Threat Show hosted by BG12 where Bulldogs’ Asia Avinger details her experience with Kobe Bryant, her WNBA ROTY picks, and more in the video below.