Ben Simmons will be returning to the NBA in the 2026-2027 season after signing a one-year, $3.5 million veteran minimum contract to join the Sacramento Kings.
This will mark Simmons’ NBA comeback after spending the past year recuperating from injuries and restoring his mental health.
Simmons will again be facing the squads he once played for earlier in his NBA career.
When Will Ben Simmons Return To Philadelphia?
The Sacramento Kings and Philadelphia 76ers will match up twice during the 2026-2027 regular season.
Their first meeting will take place on Tuesday, December 29, when the Kings host the 76ers at the Golden 1 Center at 7:00 PM PST or 10:00 PM Eastern time.
The second and final regular-season game, which is expected to be an anticipated one, will be hosted by Philadelphia at the Xfinity Mobile Arena on Wednesday, January 27, 2027, tipping off at 7:00 PM Eastern time.
It will be Simmons’ return to Philadelphia, where he played his first four seasons in the NBA, ending in a messy situation.
The turning point occurred during Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semifinals against the Atlanta Hawks, when Simmons passed up a wide-open dunk late in the fourth quarter, a moment that drew sharp, public criticism from teammate Joel Embiid and former head coach Doc Rivers, who is now a Hall of Famer.
Believing the organization had scapegoated him for the series loss, Simmons requested a trade during the offseason, cut off communication with the franchise, and refused to report to training camp.
However, he did not get traded until the start of next season, despite racking up millions of dollars in fines for his team absences, which he cited as being because of his mental health.
Philly now is a stacked squad led by Joel Embiid, LeBron James, Jaylen Brown, Tyrese Maxey, and VJ Edgecombe.
Right now, both matchups are scheduled to broadcast live on NBA League Pass.
When Will Ben Simmons Face The Brooklyn Nets And The LA Clippers?
Ben Simmons and the Kings will face the Los Angeles Clippers four times during the 2026-2027 regular season, starting with a road game at the Intuit Dome for the season opener on October 21, 2026.
The Clippers will then travel to Sacramento for games at the Golden 1 Center on January 14, 2027, and March 6, 2027, before the Kings head back to Los Angeles for the regular-season finale on April 11, 2027.
Meanwhile, Simmons will only take on his former team Brooklyn Nets, twice in the upcoming season.
The Kings will host the Nets in Sacramento for a New Year’s Eve matchup on December 31, 2026, followed by Simmons’ return to the Barclays Center in Brooklyn on March 21, 2027.
During his last active NBA campaign in the 2024-2025 season, Simmons split his time between the Nets and the Clippers, appearing in 51 regular-season games.
Over the course of that season, he averaged 5.0 points, 5.6 assists, 4.7 rebounds, 0.7 steals, and 0.5 blocks while playing 22.0 minutes per contest.
He then appeared in five playoff games for the Clippers before losing to the Denver Nuggets in the first round.
Simmons then sat out the entire 2025-2026 NBA season.
New Kings Guard Ben Simmons Returns To Philadelphia in January