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The Brooklyn Nets were blown off their home court in the season opener by the New Orleans Pelicans Wednesday night, 130-108. In the loss, Ben Simmons made his long-awaited debut with the team. Things did not go well for the embattled superstar. Simmons finished with more fouls than points, as he fouled out in 23 minutes of action.
After the game, Nets point guard Kyrie Irving addressed with the media what the team told Simmons.
“We told him in the locker room: he is a valuable piece for us and we need him out there. And fouling out is not an option. Playing aggressive is something we want him to do, but we also want to play smart,” said Irving.
Ben Simmons had a difficult assignment in his first game on the court in over a year. He had to try and guard Zion Williamson for much of the time Simmons was on the floor. That's a tall task for anyone, but especially for an under-sized four.
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Simmons finished with four points on 2-for-3 shooting (both dunks), five rebounds, five assists, three turnovers and the six fouls.
The Nets offense looked stagnant in the first half with both Simmons and Nic Claxton in the paint. Claxton however was very efficient offensively, scoring 13 points on 6-for-7 shooting. He also ripped down 10 boards in the loss. Meanwhile, Simmons posted a -26 point differential in the game. That's really hard to do when you only play 23 minutes.
Simmons and the Nets will look to shake the rust off Friday night vs. the Toronto Raptors.
