STAR TURN FOR THE BETTER
Ben to miss 4th straight game with knee soreness After getting Eastern Conference nod, Randle opens up a little on rough 2021-22 season and his comeback
Nets’ star Ben Simmons will likely miss his fourth straight game due to left knee soreness this Saturday against the Washington Wizards, head coach Jacque Vaughn said on a Zoom conference call on Friday.
Simmons left Brooklyn’s Jan. 26 loss to the Detroit Pistons after sustaining what appeared to be a swipe toward the eye. The Nets later announced he would not return due to soreness in his left knee.
Vaughn said Simmons received an MRI that came up clean.
Reserve forward T.J. Warren is also expected to miss his fourth straight game after sustaining a left shin contusion in the loss to the Pistons.
“So, Ben and TJ got on the court a little bit yesterday. They’ll probably, in about another half an hour or so, they’ll try to get on the court again,” Vaughn said from Brooklyn’s practice facility in Industry City on Friday. “You know, both are progressing. We’ll list them both as not available for Saturday’s game, and whether that is probable or questionable, we’ll see after today’s workout. So they’ll get on the court again, and we’ll see if they can progress even more. Not certain to play on Saturday.”
Vaughn said the Nets have to be cautious with their approach to Simmons given his off-season back surgery and the yearlong layoff away from basketball last season. The team outwardly remains steadfast in its desire to have Simmons in peak form for the games leading into the playoffs.
“With Ben, we are just cautious with our approach. At the end of the day, we are just talking about having guys healthy at the end of the year,” Vaughn said. “Ben did experience some soreness, and we want to make sure that soreness and swelling is out of there as he gets ready to get back on the court.”
ALL-STAR UPDATE
Kevin Durant’s status for the 2023 NBA All-Star Game remains unclear.
Durant, who has been out three weeks with an MCL sprain in his right knee, said in a recent podcast he wants to return to the rotation a few games before “sliding into” his spot as a starter in the Feb. 19 All-Star Game.
Vaughn said the team has yet to come to a determination as to whether or not Durant will play. The star forward’s knee will be re-evaluated on Monday. He has not appeared in an All-Star Game since signing in Brooklyn in 2019.
“That’s going to be an interesting balance. He’s made some statements about it. We’ll see where his headspace is,” Vaughn said on Friday. “We’ll see what our report says on Monday when that comes around and that will give us more insight.”
If the Nets are going to hold Durant to their normal injury standard, the All-Star Game is going to be a tight squeeze.
Brooklyn’s performance staff usually requires a player to work from individual work up to five-onfive basketball before green-lighting a player to return from injury. That’s part of a “ramp-up” process to ensure a player is conditioned well enough to endure the rigors of a full game.
“At the end of the day, you are not promised tomorrow. I understand these dudes are human beings, and you don’t know what’s going to happen a year from now,” Vaughn said. “The mindset of Kevin, I totally understand it, but at the same time, we’ll do what’s best for him and the group.”
YUTA IN
Nets reserve forward Yuta Watanabe is likely to play against the Wizards on Saturday, Vaughn said.
Watanabe played through back tightness in the blowout loss to the Boston Celtics. On a number of occasions in that Celtics game, he grimaced or hunched over, a sign of discomfort in his back.
“He got some treatment yesterday. I’m not sure what we’ll list him at,” Vaughn said. “He was improved with treatment, so kind of leaning towards him playing on Saturday.”
Julius Randle finally opened up. Perhaps it was the validation of another All-Star selection. Or, maybe it was the confidence immediately after a home victory Thursday over the Miami Heat. Regardless of the reason, Randle provided the first real explanation of his emotional transformation. From last season’s petulance to this season’s resurrection.
The key moment, Randle revealed, was a visit in the offseason from assistant coach Johnnie Bryant, who got real about the attitude adjustment required from the Knicks’ top player.
“He was talking about the year before and said something like, ‘If you were your teammates and saw you acting the way you did sometimes, with body language, showing frustration, would you want to be your teammate?’” Randle said. “And I said, ‘No.’ So I had to look myself in the mirror and take accountability and get better and learn from it.”
Bryant had made the trip to Dallas for this “honest” conversation, which followed an important mental and physical decompression from Randle after his rough 2021-22 campaign. He purposefully didn’t touch a ball or workout for a couple months.
“I was out of shape,” Randle said. “He was like, ‘Don’t even worry about it.’ He came and saw me and it was more like big brother, little brother, holding me accountable, talking to me, getting my mind right, more than anything.
“He came to me and had an honest conversation. And it helped me put my ego and my pride to the side. And try to adjust my game and look at myself in the mirror and do what’s best for the team.”
The difference is noticeable. The blowups from last season — whether they were directed at the referees, the fans, his teammates or the video coordinator — have diminished significantly. He’s a full participant in the timeout huddles, which wasn’t always the case. ot coincidentally, Randle’s production has elevated in almost every statistical category. And as the NBA announced Thursday, Randle’s an All-Star again because he learned to deal better with frustration.
“Sometimes I get into my own head because I’m such a perfectionist with stuff,” he said. “And when things aren’t going right, I can get a little frustrated. For me, I have to accept failure, accept those things, learn to deal with frustration. And I think that is really like the biggest adjustment. Success feels amazing and I don’t want to let go of it. For me, while we were having our ups and down, I had to learn how to be a leader through success and failure.”
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