The Golden State Warriors have had meaningful success with a range of undervalued players in recent years, whether it be through re-igniting stagnant form or simply getting them healthy after injury troubles.
Andrew Wiggins may be the most notable example, but the likes of Otto Porter Jr. and Donte DiVincenzo have also parlayed a one-year run with the franchise into bigger contracts elsewhere. De'Anthony Melton appeared to be the latest example this past season, only for a bright start to be ruined by a season-ending ACL injury.
With limited financial resources this offseason, the Warriors may need to take a gamble on another reclamation project. Yet in looking at the state of the Golden State roster, they're absolutely not the team who should be taking the risk on former No. 1 overall pick Ben Simmons.
Ben Simmons has again been floated as an option for the Warriors
Ben Stinar of Sports Illustrated had already proposed Simmons as a potential free agency target for the Warriors earlier in the offseason, but now a more notable insider has also urged the franchise into thinking about the 3x All-Star.
Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area has listed Simmons as one of six potential center options for Golden State to consider, believing the 28-year-old could be good value in a potential redemption story.
"He might be the league’s worst finisher at the rim. Just awful," Poole wrote. "But hear me out. He’s 6-foot-10, 240 pounds, still has some of his once-stunning athleticism and remains a strong, switchable defender."
Perhaps there's still time for Simmons to turn things around after a dreadful four-year period, particularly if he can get his body right given he's only played in 108 regular season games since the 2021 playoffs.
The chances of that happening with the Warriors are remote though, with too many questions on how even a healthy version of Simmons would fit with the franchise. Sure, Golden State need to add size, but they also need a big man who would ideally shoot threes or at the very least be some sort of scoring threat.
Simmons infamously isn't that, at least not anymore after averaging just 5.0 points in 22.2 minutes per game this season. The last thing the Warriors need is someone who won't even look at the rim, with his skillset overlapping far too much with Draymond Green as a defense-first player who's best as a ball-handler and passer on offense.
As wrote here earlier in the month, Simmons would suddenly become an option if the franchise made the shock decision to trade Green. Barring that, adding Simmons to an already below average offense would be a painful watch for Warrior fans who need the franchise improving their offense rather than going backwards.