The Golden State Warriors spent much of the summer looking for ways to add size, playmaking and defensive versatility around Stephen Curry without giving up the flexibility they have carefully preserved.
Ben Simmons apparently made that list.
Sam Amick of The Athletic reported Friday that Golden State was among the teams in the mix for Simmons before the three-time All-Star agreed to a one-year, $3.5 million deal with the Sacramento Kings. The Knicks were also involved, according to Amick.
Simmons, 30, did not play last season while recovering from longstanding back issues. His deal with Sacramento marks a return to the NBA after more than a year away from competition.
For Golden State, the interest is notable even if the pursuit never became a signing.
The Warriors have spent years valuing players who can defend multiple positions, handle the ball and keep the offense moving around Curry. At his best, Simmons did all three at an elite level.
The larger question is whether that version of Simmons still exists.
Ben Simmons Would Have Been a Fascinating Warriors Gamble
Simmons remains one of the NBA’s strangest reclamation projects.
The No. 1 pick in the 2016 draft became a three-time All-Star in Philadelphia, earned two All-Defensive selections and developed into one of the league’s most disruptive perimeter defenders.
His career then veered off course because of injuries and prolonged absences.
Simmons has appeared in only 383 regular-season games across 10 seasons and has missed three full years. He last played in April 2025, finishing that season with the Clippers after Brooklyn bought him out.
Still, Golden State’s interest makes basketball sense.
A healthy Simmons could theoretically defend wings and forwards, rebound, initiate offense and push the ball in transition while allowing Curry to spend more possessions working off the ball.
His lack of shooting would have created obvious spacing concerns, particularly alongside Draymond Green. But on a minimum-level deal, Simmons would have represented a relatively low-cost bet on a player whose peak skill set once fit almost perfectly with the Warriors’ preferred style.
Warriors Have Added Niang, Williams While Searching for Depth
Simmons was not the only veteran Golden State considered as it reshaped the roster.
The Warriors added Georges Niang, giving Steve Kerr another experienced frontcourt shooter who can stretch the floor, and also signed guard Brandon Williams to bolster the backcourt.
Golden State has continued to look for low-risk depth as Jimmy Butler and Moses Moody work back from knee injuries, putting added pressure on the rest of the rotation early in the season.
The Warriors also brought former first-round pick Dalen Terry to training camp on an Exhibit 10 deal, another swing on size and perimeter defense.
Simmons would have been the biggest name of that group, but the roster logic was similar: add versatility without committing major long-term money.
Instead, he chose Sacramento.
The Kings drafted Darius Acuff Jr. at No. 7 in June and are expected to use Simmons as veteran depth behind the rookie point guard. Sacramento had also considered Russell Westbrook and Victor Oladipo before landing Simmons.
Simmons Interest Shows What Warriors Still Want
Golden State’s pursuit should not be mistaken for evidence that the front office viewed Simmons as some major solution.
At $3.5 million, this was always going to be a flyer.
But the interest does say something about the type of player the Warriors continue to value.
The Warriors still want size. They still want secondary creation. They still want defenders who can switch across positions and reduce some of the physical burden on Curry, Green and a veteran-heavy core.
Niang gives them shooting. Williams gives them backcourt depth. Terry gives them another developmental wing option.
Simmons would have offered a different kind of gamble — one built almost entirely on the possibility that some version of his old game could return.
Sacramento will find out whether that bet pays off.
Golden State, meanwhile, will keep looking for ways to add one more layer around Curry.
Warriors Targeted 3-Time All-Star Before He Chose Western Rival