Ben Simmons is still doing the most comically Ben Simmons-y things on the court

Ben Simmons again showed us why his fallen star status will never be resurrected to NBA prominence.

Now playing for the LA Clippers, Simmons passed up an easy layup on Sunday afternoon against the Golden State Warriors in the regular season finale. The first thing everyone thought of was the routine layup (or dunk) Simmons passed on during game seven against the Atlanta Hawks in the second round of the 2021 playoffs.

Say hello to the new Ben Simmons, same as the old Ben Simmons

The stakes weren’t as high in this game as the one with Philly in the postseason, but Simmons reminded the world of why he’s become just another guy. It’s hard to believe that Simmons was once compared to all-time greats like LeBron James and Magic Johnson. That Ben Simmons entered witness protection long ago.

Simmons can barely get on the court on this Clippers team, averaging 16.7 minutes in 17 games since coming over after the Brooklyn Nets bought him out of their deal. His confidence never returned after that crucial elimination game against the Hawks. Everything Simmons has dealt with since then seems mental but has affected his game entirely.

The layup mishap Sunday against the Warriors showed that Simmons still can’t shake the ghosts of layups past. Surely, that game seven still haunts him and was the day his life changed. We’re talking about a player who was Rookie of the year, a three-time All-Star, two-time All-Defense, All-NBA, All-Rookie and led the league in steals within the first four official years in the NBA. He missed what would have been his first season with an injury in 2016-17.

Over the last three years, Simmons hasn’t averaged even seven points per game and continues to slide down depth charts. A player who was once a hot commodity is now seen as a liability in most cases. A player who should’ve been on his way to the Hall of Fame is now destined to play out his NBA days as a journeyman.