After a disappointing first season with the Brooklyn Nets, Ben Simmons opened up about his injury struggles, rehab process and more in a tell-all interview with ESPN’s Andscape.

Among the topics Simmons dished on was his rocky relationship with head coach Jacque Vaughn last season:

“I feel like our relationship, to start, was terrible,” he said. “There was just so many different factors going into the team. We had [former Nets head coach] Steve [Nash] and then [Vaughn] became the head coach. Kev [Kevin Durant], Ky [Kyrie Irving] leave. I’m not playing. I don’t really have a relationship with [Vaughn] like that because he wasn’t the head coach, because there’s a little distance, or a little gap between assistants and injured players sometimes.”

“I got mad at him because there was no communication. There’s none of that. So, [I’m] kind of a little frustrated with Coach. I know Coach is frustrated with me.”

Vaughn’s frustrations with Simmons were evident at points throughout a slew of absences early last season. The 27-year-old missed three extended periods in the first half of the year due to knee, calf and back ailments.

The head coach appeared to roll his eyes when clarifying Simmons’ injury status after he exited the second game of a back to back on Jan. 26:

Simmons said that he was on the floor when he shouldn’t have been at points last season, something that exacerbated his relationship with Vaughn.

“One day, people are telling him [I’m] good, and next, it’s not. From the start, I wasn’t good. So, it was a tough situation for him and myself,” he said.

However, with an offseason of rigorous training under his belt, the former number one pick was adamant that his body has made significant strides. Vaughn has made trips down to Miami three times to attend Simmons’ workouts, and the 27-year-old said his relationship with the head coach has taken a turn.

“Now having the right plan and team around me, now he’s seen, ‘OK, he is dedicated. He wants to work. He wants to win, and he’s willing to do what he needs to do to be on the court.’ So now, we’re in a great place,” Simmons said of Vaughn. “I speak to him every other day. And I’m excited because I think Coach is great. Great as a person, great coach. That’s the main thing, just being a good human. He can relate to a lot of players, he’s played the game. So, it’s good.”

Simmons indicated he’s better prepared to sustain the grind of an 82-game season in 2023-24, calling his body “the strongest it’s been” since joining Brooklyn. The three-time All-Star said he expects to be ready when the Nets open their season October 25th vs. the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Simmons will open training camp next month alongside Vaughn and a revamped Nets coaching staff.