Ben Simmons tears Achilles in Kings practice, faces long layoff
Web StoryWatch this story in 15 seconds →Key takeaways
- Ben Simmons tore his right Achilles tendon at Kings practice on Sunday, October 18.
- The Kings said he will have surgery. He will likely miss the full 2026-27 season.
- The injury ends his comeback try before the season starts. It also hurts the Kings' guard depth.
Ben Simmons tore his right Achilles tendon at practice on Sunday, October 18. The Sacramento Kings shared the news the same day. The 30-year-old guard will have surgery.
He will likely miss the full 2026-27 season.
The injury is a hard blow. Simmons had spent a year away from the NBA. He had worked to get his body and mind right.
He had just signed with the Kings last month. His comeback had looked strong in camp. Now it stops before the season even starts.
What happened
Simmons got hurt during a live drill at practice. A live drill is a full-speed practice game. Players go hard, like in a real game.
Simmons went down during one of those drills. Team staff then checked him right away.
An MRI scan confirmed the bad news. An MRI is a scan that shows soft tissue in the body. It showed a torn right Achilles tendon.
The Achilles tendon is a thick cord at the back of the ankle. It links the calf muscle to the heel bone. It helps a player walk, run, and jump.
A tear means the cord has split. Surgery can fix it. Rehab then takes many months.
The Kings announced the injury in a press release on Sunday. The release said Simmons was hurt in the live drill. It said the MRI showed the torn tendon.
It said he will undergo surgery. The team did not give a date for the surgery. It also did not give a return date.
ESPN's Shams Charania first reported the feared tear, per the NBA site. The Kings then confirmed it in their own release. Early reports called the injury "believed" to be a tear.
The team's release settled it. The tear is confirmed.
Simmons spoke about the injury on social media. He wrote that the injury is "another chapter in my journey, not the end of my story".
The timing could not be much worse. The Kings open the season on Wednesday. They play on the road against the Los Angeles Clippers.
Simmons will not be there. His comeback ends before he plays one real game for Sacramento.
Simmons had signed a one-year deal with the Kings last month. The deal was worth $3.5 million, according to the New York Post. He had spent last year as an unsigned free agent.
That means no team had him under contract. He used the year to rest and rebuild. He then joined the Kings for a fresh start.
His preseason play had been a bright spot. He played in two preseason games for Sacramento. He scored 10.5 points per game in those games.
He also grabbed 4 rebounds per game. He gave 4 assists per game. He did that in just 17.4 minutes per game.
Those are strong numbers for short minutes.
His best night came last Friday against the San Antonio Spurs. He played 25 minutes in that game. He scored 14 points.
He grabbed 8 rebounds. He gave 7 assists. He also made 1 steal.
It was the kind of all-round game that made him a star years ago.
The Kings had a clear role in mind for him. He was set to back up rookie Darius Acuff Jr. at point guard.
The point guard runs the team's attack. He brings the ball up the court. He sets up shots for others.
Simmons was also set to play more than one spot. ESPN reported he could play positions 1 through 5. That means he could guard small players and big players.
That kind of range is rare.
Why it matters
This injury matters because of the comeback story behind it. Simmons was once one of the top young stars in the NBA. The Philadelphia 76ers picked him first overall in the 2016 draft.
That means he was the top pick in the whole draft. He went on to win Rookie of the Year. He made three All-Star teams.
An All-Star team picks the best players of the season. He also made the All-Defensive first team twice. That team honors the best defenders in the league.
Then his career hit hard times. A back issue hurt him for years. The issue limited how he could move.
It cost him many games. It also shook his confidence. He had two back surgeries in past years to fix the problem.
He left the league after the 2024-25 season. He spent a full year away from the game. He worked on his body and his mind.
The year off seemed to work. The buzz out of Sacramento was very positive, according to NBC Sports. Simmons was moving well in camp.
He was playing with more attack in his game. His preseason numbers backed up the good reports. The Kings liked what they saw.
So did many fans. The comeback story felt real.
Now that story is on hold. The Kings lose a smart passer and a strong defender. They lose a player who can guard many spots.
They lose depth at guard. Depth means good backup players. A team needs depth to last a long season.
The Kings now have less of it.
The injury also hits the team's plans. Head coach Doug Christie must now change his rotation. The rotation is the set of players who get minutes.
Precious Achiuwa may get more time, according to NBC Sports. Achiuwa is a forward who has started preseason games. The rest of the group must now pick up the slack.
That group includes rookie Darius Acuff Jr. It also includes Domantas Sabonis, Zach LaVine, and Keegan Murray.
Simmons' own past shows what the Kings will miss. Two seasons ago, he played 51 games. He split those games between the Nets and the Clippers.
He scored 5 points per game. He gave 5.6 assists per game. He grabbed 4.7 rebounds per game.
He shot 52 percent from the field. He made no three-point shots. His scoring was far below his early years.
But his passing and rebounding were still strong. Those are the skills the Kings must now replace.
There is a wider pattern here too. Simmons is the third NBA player with an Achilles tear this preseason. Hoops Rumors reported that fact.
The other two are Otega Oweh of the Thunder and Ariel Hukporti of the Sixers. Three such injuries in one preseason is a lot. Each one ends a season before it starts.
Each one hurts a team that had plans for that player.
This article is for information only and is not medical advice.
What happens next
The next step is surgery. The Kings said Simmons will undergo surgery. They did not say when.
They also did not give a return date. Reports say he will likely miss the whole season. NBC Sports said he will miss the entire 2026-27 season.
ESPN called the injury likely season-ending. The team has not set a date for his return. That will come after surgery and early rehab.
Rehab will be long. Rehab means slow, step-by-step healing work. First comes rest after surgery.
Then comes light movement. Then come strength work and on-court drills. Each step takes time.
The team will share updates as they come. Fans should not expect a quick return.
The Kings must move on without him. They open the season on Wednesday against the Clippers. The NBA season starts with a full slate of games.
Sacramento will lean on its other guards and forwards. The team has an open spot on its 15-man roster, according to Hoops Rumors. That means the Kings can add one more player.
They may sign a guard to add depth. They may also give more minutes to young players. Coach Christie will test new lineups in the first weeks.
For Simmons, the road is long but clear. He must heal, then rebuild his strength. He must then earn his way back to the court.
He has done hard rehabs before. His back surgeries taught him patience. His year away taught him how to work alone.
His own words show his mindset. He sees this as one more chapter, not the end of the story.
The NBA standings will move on without him. The Kings will chase wins with the players they have. Simmons will chase a return to full health.
The next update will come after his surgery. Until then, the Kings and their fans must wait. The comeback is paused.
It is not over. Not yet.
The bottom line
Ben Simmons tore his right Achilles tendon at Kings practice on Sunday. He will have surgery and will likely miss the whole 2026-27 season. The injury ends a comeback that had looked real.
It also leaves the Kings short at guard. The next step is surgery, then a long rehab. Simmons has faced hard rehabs before.
This one will test him again.
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