The Philadelphia 76ers and their faithful have been waiting since Draft night of 2016 to see what No. 1 pick Ben Simmons can do in a real NBA game. His 2016-17 season was cut short by a fractured right foot, but according to Tom Moore of the Bucks County Courier Times, Simmons has been cleared to resume full basketball activity:
In the wake of Ben Simmons dominating a pickup game Monday night in his native Australia, some folks wondered if the 76ers had told Simmons he could participate in such a contest beforehand.
An NBA source said Tuesday that Simmons “has been cleared to resume full basketball activity for some time.” Simmons, who missed his NBA rookie season due to a fractured right foot, scored 34 points Monday, including 17 in the fourth quarter.
The source said center Joel Embiid hasn’t been cleared for fullcourt scrimmaging “as of yet.” Embiid, who is from Cameroon, worked with children as part of the NBA Africa Game earlier this month, but didn’t play in the Aug. 5 game.
The talented Embiid missed the final 2½ months of the 2016-17 campaign with a torn left meniscus after sitting out his first two seasons because of a pair of right foot surgeries. He underwent what the team called “successful minor arthroscopic surgery” on March 24.
In a release sent out by the team at the time, 76ers director of performance research and development Dr. David T. Martin said the Sixers “anticipate he will resume basketball activities this summer.”
