Brandon Apter, Sports Talk Philly editor 
The Philadelphia 76ers have been through more than their fair share of injuries over the past few seasons. While a lot of the focus today seems to be on the health of Joel Embiid, now is about the time Ben Simmons should be nearing a return, but it doesn't seem imminent after hearing Brett Brown's comments on Tuesday.
“I feel like he’s moving forward," Brown said prior to the Sixers game in Charlotte. "But to say that we believe he’s going to be ready for five-on-five during the All-Star break would be misleading. I don’t see that."
Simmons, the no. 1 pick in the 2016 NBA Draft, has been sidelined since the end of training camp in September. He suffered a Jones fracture in his right foot on the last day of camp and had surgery in early October. Normally, a Jones fracture takes between 2-3 months to heal, but here we are four months later and Simmons hasn't even participated in full practice.
“People shouldn’t hear that he’s not moving forward, he is," Brown told reporters. "But it’s at a very slow pace, our pace.”
Jessica Camerato of CSNPhilly.com reports that Simmons has been working out at the Sixers practice facility in Camden, New Jersey, doing light one-on-one work with Delaware 87ers forward James Wood. In early January, Simmons' cutting ability was reported at 80 percent during 5-on-0 practices. One would imagine that it's only a matter of time before those become 5-on-5's, but there's no indication on when that may occur.
“I think that when we all get back and he’s around his team again, and because it’s not an ideal situation to manufacture five-on-five during the break, that we can better craft and construct something that will allow the return to play to be more responsible,” Brown said.
Some are beginning to believe we may not see Ben Simmons at all this season.
The Sixers head to Boston on Wednesday night for their final game before this weekend's All-Star Game. Dario Saric and Jahlil Okafor are set to play in the Rising Stars Challenge while Joel Embiid will miss the festivities.
