NEW YORK — First Ben Simmons forced the miss at the rim. Next he grabbed the defensive rebound and pushed the ball up court.
Then he rifled a pass to the right corner to a wide-open Yuta Watanabe, who drilled a corner triple.
Timeout, Grizzlies. Simmons started celebrating after a game-swinging play.
What was supposed to be a homecoming of sorts for Kyrie Irving, who played for the first time after serving an eight-game suspension for conduct detrimental to the team, quickly became the “Ben10″ show — and the Nets pulled away from a short handed Memphis Grizzlies team to secure their second straight win with a 127-115 victory at Barclays Center on Sunday.
And while Irving got the loudest applause during pregame introductions and made the crowd “ooh” and “ahh” with a crossover that sent stalwart Grizzlies defender Dillon Brooks crashing into a screen, it was Simmons — starting in place of the absent Nic Claxton (personal reasons) who made an impact on the night.
It was Simmons who continues to get better with time as he recovers from both offseason back surgery and bout with a sore left knee and shakes off the rust associated with missing the entire 2021-22 NBA season.
Simmons finished with a season-high 22 points on 11-of-13 shooting from the field. He scored in a variety of ways, including post hook shots over starting Grizzlies center Steven Adams and a putback dunk on one of Kevin Durant’s rare misses. On one possession, Simmons took a rebound the full length of the court and drove directly into Adams before euro-stepping and finishing on the other side of the rim with a reverse layup.
On another possession, Simmons caught Adams sleeping off the ball with a cut from the top of the key, beating the stronger and bigger big man from New Zealand with speed and athleticism.
It was by all accounts Simmons’ best performance of an early Nets season, continuing a trend for the embattled playmaking forward who continues to take a step forward every time he steps on the court. Simmons’ last three games have been revelatory: 11 points in 20 minutes in the blowout loss to the Sacramento Kings; 15 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists in the win against Portland; and now this.
A game that suggests Simmons should start at center no matter who is lined up across from him for the opponent.
Three of Memphis’ starters — All-Star guard Ja Morant (ankle), starting two guard Desmond Bane (big toe), and Defensive Player of the Year candidate Jaren Jackson Jr. (knee) — sat against the Nets, as did veteran 3-and-D wing and Long Island native Danny Green (knee).
The Grizzlies, however, still had Adams, whose reputation as the NBA’s strongest strong man precedes him. Adams finished with 15 points and 10 rebounds. On more than one occasion, he used his strength to finish through Simmons at the rim.
Nets head coach Jacque Vaughn said ahead of the game he had no intention of attempting to match Memphis’ size — and he lived up to it. Second year big man Day’Ron Sharpe didn’t play until the Nets ran up a double-digit lead late in the fourth quarter.
Instead, Vaughn played Simmons 35 minutes and played veteran big man Markieff Morris as a small ball five behind him. Morris finished with eight points and seven rebounds, hitting two of his four attempts from downtown on the night.
Durant finished with a team-high 26 points on 9-of-16 shooting from the field. He picked up a league-leading seventh technical foul, surpassing Warriors heartbeat Draymond Green for the No. 1 spot.
Watanabe shot four of six from downtown for his 16 points, and a visibly rusty Irving finished 5-of-12 from the field for 14 points.
Simmons powered the Nets to victory on Sunday, and he’s proving the healthier he gets, the more reliable he will become for a Nets team whose championship hopes hinge on his ability to stay healthy and play at a high level all season.
