Woj: Ben Simmons Has 'No Chance' to Play for Nets vs. 76ers amid Back Injury Rehab

Ben Simmons' return to the court in Philadelphia will reportedly have to wait until the playoffs or next season.

ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski appeared on NBA Countdown and said there is "no chance" Simmons will play for the Brooklyn Nets during Thursday's road game against the Philadelphia 76ers because of lingering back concerns.

Head coach Steve Nash told reporters Simmons will be with the team, though.

Philadelphia probably isn't going to welcome Simmons with open arms whenever he does return to play on the road against the team that selected him with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2016 NBA draft.

After all, the saga surrounding him included a trade request, critical comments from Joel Embiid and head coach Doc Rivers after a playoff loss to the Atlanta Hawks, a team-issued suspension after he was kicked out of practice and Simmons saying he wasn't mentally prepared to take the court.

The 76ers eventually traded Simmons, Seth Curry, Andre Drummond, an unprotected 2022 first-round pick and a protected 2027 first-round pick to the Nets for James Harden and Paul Millsap and now look like legitimate title contenders with Harden and Embiid unleashing pick-and-roll brilliance.

Things haven't been quite as great for the Nets.

Brooklyn is 32-32 and sitting in eighth place in the Eastern Conference standings. The season has been defined by on-court attrition that included injury concerns for Harden before he was traded, a knee injury for Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving's inability to play home games because he remains unvaccinated against COVID-19.

Joe Harris is also out for the season, and Simmons has yet to play a game.

Yet Wojnarowski reported "there's tremendous urgency" to get the LSU product on the floor so he can grow accustomed to playing with his new teammates before the playoffs. The hope is he increases his workload when the Nets return from a three-game road trip that ends in Philadelphia and eventually makes his way back.

The three-time All-Star could provide a major boost for a team that has lost three in a row and is a mere 3-16 in the last 19 games.

Yet that boost will not happen in time for Thursday's highly anticipated game at Philadelphia.