The last time former No. 1 overall pick Ben Simmons suited up for an NBA game, he played under five minutes for the Los Angeles Clippers in Game 5 of their first-round playoff exit to the Denver Nuggets last season. He recorded zero points while recording one rebound and one block. It ended a season where Simmons played just 18 games for L.A. after being waived by the Brooklyn Nets in February, and signing a deal for the remainder of the season with the Clippers.

He went unsigned as a free agent during the offseason, and while he’s still working on an NBA comeback, the three-time All Star’s focus has been on professional fishing as of late. Simmons told Andscape that he’s been completing two-a-day basketball and strength and rehabilitation workouts six days a week, with hopes of making his return to the NBA. While there’s no firm timeline for his return, and with no team there’s certainly no expectations placed on him, the two-time All-Defensive player hopes to be healthy enough to join a team during the All-Star break, or perhaps next season. But he doesn’t want to just be on a roster for the sake of it.

“I don’t believe it’s just [about] getting on a team,” Simmons said. “So, if I were to play right now, I think I’d fit right into the NBA just given what I can do. But I want to give everything I can to the game. I don’t think there’s any point in just wasting a spot just to be out there. I think that’s a little selfish. And there are guys that do it now. But that’s what it is, the business.”

In conjunction with workouts that Simmons says are “exhausting,” he’s become an owner of a professional fishing team, the South Florida Sails. It’s part of the Sport Fishing Championship league, which consists of 16 teams across 11 states. They compete in tournaments catching various fish, with a championship on the line at the end of a season.

“It’s a very niche sport. And if you don’t know, you don’t know,” Simmons said. “But once you experience it and get out there and see what it’s about, you’re kind of in awe of what the sport is. And that’s just something I’ve always been interested in in terms of the sport of fishing. The technique. And there’s so much to it that people just don’t understand. These guys are fishing on million-dollar vessels, and they’re out for days at a time. So, it’s tedious and gritty, but a lot of fun. It’s one of those worlds where you just got to kind of experience it, get into it and see what it’s about.”

Simmons isn’t a member on the team, as he said he’s “not the best angler,” but he’s been incredibly committed to being involved from an ownership standpoint.

“I have a passion in helping these guys grow the sport because I really believe in it. So, for me to compete, it would be a little selfish. Maybe if I work hard enough to be a bit of an angler, maybe I’ll put myself on the roster. But it’s more so for me about building the community in Miami around the fishing. That’s really important, and it’s a responsibility that we have now.”

As far as his NBA return goes, Simmons said he hasn’t suffered any setbacks as he tries to rejoin the league. As encouraging as that is, Simmons hasn’t played 60 or more games since his second season in the league — which is pre-pandemic. He played 51 games last season split between the Nets and Clippers, but was still far away from the two-way floor general that earned him several accolades early in his career.

In reality, Simmons might not ever return to that version of himself who was locking down the league’s best offensive players on one end and dishing out some eyebrow-raising dimes on the other. But he still wants to try.

“We’re human, we want to find out,” Simmons said. “I got to see. I don’t think this story is over for me playing, but let’s see where it goes. So as long as I put in that work and put the energy into doing that, then everything else will write itself.”