The Brooklyn Nets ruled out Ben Simmons for the team's matchup with the Los Angeles Lakers Sunday.

Simmons recently returned from an extended absence while dealing with soreness and swelling in his left knee. The 26-year-old played in Brooklyn's last three games after missing four the week prior.

The Nets did not list Simmons on the injury report heading into the matchup but downgraded him to questionable before ruling him out 30 minutes before tip-off. This comes with Brooklyn on the back end of a back-t0-back with Simmons playing 14 minutes in a win over the Clippers Saturday.

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Brooklyn has not provided details on the extent of the 26-year-old's nagging knee issue outside of swelling and soreness. Simmons came off the bench in his last three appearances.

The three-time All-Star has struggled to open the season while returning from offseason back surgery and dealing with the knee ailment. Simmons has averaged 5.2 points on just 5.0 shots per game while looking noticeably tentative offensively. The Aussie took just two shots during Saturday's win.

Ben Simmons has failed to approach anything resembling his old physical self in nine appearances with Brooklyn this season. The late scratch Sunday brings more questions about the status of his knee moving forward.