The injured Ben Simmons was the only Net who wasn’t in Philadelphia for the first two games of their opening-round playoff series against the 76ers.
He stayed home to concentrate on his rehab, the progress of which is arguably the most important factor of their entire offseason.
As the only former All-Star on the Nets’ roster, returning Simmons to even a facsimile of his old self is a top priority.
And though the prospect of a second back surgery hasn’t been completely ruled out, The Post has learned it’s now considered unlikely, and he has made progress, not just in his health, but also in his headspace.
“There will be an assessment around the start of May, and if he [feels] exponentially worse or no improvement, that could end up an option. But every sign has indicated that that won’t be the case,” a source familiar with the situation told The Post.
“He’s made really good improvement.
“The evaluation is a normal evaluation, though, nothing extreme, just kind of monitoring his progress and surgery is not in the realm of expectations for him.”
From a timing point of view, that’s key for Nets general manager Sean Marks’ planning purposes, coming before the June draft and free agency.
When Simmons had microdiscectomy surgery for a herniated L-4 disk on May 5, 2022, multiple experts told The Post it could take 18 months for him to fully recover — meaning about a month into the 2023-24 season.
Denver’s Michael Porter Jr., who has also fought back from a similar injury and procedure, seconded that timeline.
Trying to play through pain, Simmons was limited to just 42 games this season, none after Feb. 15. He was diagnosed on March 24 with nerve impingement in his back and eventually was shut down to rehab.
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A second source had told also told The Post that the Nets would have to wait until Simmons was further along in the rehab process to know if he would need another surgery.
But that now seems unlikely and could be put to bed altogether six or seven weeks before Marks has to begin fine-tuning a roster left mismatched and wing-heavy after the trades in February of Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving.
Simmons was visibly lacking explosion this season in averaging 6.9 points, 6.3 rebounds and 6.1 assists, all career-lows, after missing all of last season.
It’s worth noting that Simmons cited not just back woes, but also mental health issues, while sitting out the 2021-22, first with Philadelphia and then with the Nets.
But according to the source that told The Post surgery was now considered highly unlikely, those closest to Simmons have seen a positive change in his mindset.
“The group around Ben has noticed a complete change in Ben’s focus and mentality [through] this rehab and how he has attacked it and engaged with everything,” the source told The Post, “and there is a lot of belief in him being able to return to his All-Star form.”
This article first appeared on The New York Postand was reproduced with permission.
