Count JB Bickerstaff among those who still believe in Ben Simmons. Before his team's season-opening matchup with the Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday night, the Cleveland Cavaliers coach defended Simmons against the widespread criticism he's faced since ever since his infamous bungle with the Philadelphia 76ers in the 2021 playoffs.

“He's a unique talent. I think all the conversation around him is unfair to an extent. He's a hell of a basketball player,” Bickerstaff said of Simmons on Wednesday during pregame media availability. “I don't know how many 6'10 guys can do the things he's capable of—being able to facilitate a game, play with the pace that he can play at, put pressure on the rim, he makes passes that 95% of the league can't even see. So you put all that together in a 6'10 frame and then a guy that takes one-on-one defensive challenges, can guard multiple positions there, that's a problem. He's been an All-Star for a reason, he was highly touted for a reason, and I don't think all that's disappeared as much as people want to claim.”

Ben Simmons' resurgence with Nets in 2023-24

Ben Simmons, Nets, NBA Preseason

A three-time All-Star and two-time First Team All-Defense selection who was Defensive Player of the Year runner-up in 2021, Simmons has been a shell of himself over the last two seasons. He missed all of 2021-22 after holding out from the Sixers and dealing with a lingering back injury upon his trade to the Nets, then appeared in just 42 games last season while setting career-lows across the board.

But Simmons flashed his once-breathtaking athleticism during preseason action with Brooklyn, averaging 6.5 points, 5.3 rebounds, 7.0 assists and 1.3 steals per game while re-cementing himself as the team's starting point guard. Simmons wasn't surprised by his eye-opening play, his confidence steeled by a body that's finally cooperating after undergoing a debilitating back injury that required surgery in May 2022. The basketball world seemed shocked at his near-vintage speed, burst and overall mobility, though, conveniently forgetting Simmons was nowhere close to full health following his ugly exit from Philadelphia.

“This is what people don’t know,” he recently told Christopher Riley of Esquire. “I was struggling walking and little things like going upstairs. I had pain in my knee and in my back just sitting down in cars. The smallest things to me that seemed normal were such a struggle. You could tell in the way I was breathing too. Because every time I would go to do something I would just be compressed and trying to get ready to brace myself. So to be able to stand up right after this interview and go walk around is a blessing for me.”

The 27-year-old spent the summer diligently rehabbing, going through the painstaking process of rebuilding his coordination and movement skills one small step at a time. All that hard work clearly paid off, as Simmons enters 2023-24 healthy as ever, ready to prove his days as a two-way impact player are far from over.

Does that mean Ben Simmons will suddenly start stepping back for smooth mid-rangers or splashing triples? No way. He's made next to no improvement as a shooter, failing to attempt one triple during preseason action while making just 57.1% of his free throws. Don't expect that rippling weakness to dominate discussions of his game going forward, though. If Simmons comes close to just getting back to his old, pre-injury self, warts and all, it'll be one of the most pleasant stories of the season.