It’s been a bouncy year for three-time NBA All-Star Ben Simmons, both on the court, where lately he’s become almost as known for not playing as for playing, and in the real estate arena.
The 25-year-old 6’11” power forward, who signed on as a teenager with the Philadelphia 76ers as the first overall pick in the 2016 NBA Draft, sat out his first season due to injury but was named NBA Rookie of the Year for the 2017-18 season. Several screamingly successful seasons followed, and in 2019 he signed a five-year contract extension worth a staggering $170 million.
Alas, a disappointing 2020-21 playoff season in which he struggled to get the ball in the basket, both from the court and the free-throw line, led to a lackluster start to the 2021-22 season. His inability to get his game on track, and the attendant scrutiny from fans, coaches, and the media, only festered more frustration and increasing tensions. Simmons was tossed out of practice several times, suspended for one game, and became the most fined player in NBA history for the many games he skipped. Then, sometime late last summer, he requested a trade from the 76ers, a rare demand from a top player.
Simmons got his wish earlier this year when he was traded in a blockbuster deal to the Brooklyn Nets that included Andre Drummond and Seth Curry. He was, however, almost immediately sidelined for the entire season with a herniated disk. Last week he underwent back surgery and isn’t expected back on the court until the start of next season’s training camp.
Amid the turmoil, Simmons has also been making moves to shake up his cross-country property portfolio. Last summer he dropped $17.5 million on a “modern farmhouse” in L.A.’s ritzy Hidden Hills suburb, where several family members of his former girlfriend Kendall Jenner famously own big spreads. And shortly after he requested the trade last fall, he hoisted his deluxe condo at the Ritz Carlton Residences in downtown Philadelphia on the market at $3.1 million; the asking price has since dipped to a tad under $3 million.
Determined to put Philly in his rearview mirror even before a trade was announced, Simmons also put another of his homes on the market last fall, this one in Moorestown, N.J., a 40 minute drive from where the 76ers play. The asking price was $5 million.
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Image Credit: MLS Six months later, records show the lavishly customized 10,500-square-foot mansion has been sold for $4.55 million. The listing was handled by Juliet Cordeiro at Compass; the buyer, Philadelphia Phillies right fielder Nick Castellanos, was represented in the deal by Kimberly Brownlie at RE/MAX First Realty.
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Image Credit: MLS The sale price may be almost twice the $2.375 million Simmons paid for the then brand-spanking-new mansion in 2019, but the $2.2 million profit was surely eaten up if not erased by the many expensive changes he made throughout the six-bedroom and six-and-a-half-bath spread.
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Image Credit: MLS Spearheaded by Philadelphia-based design firm Widell and Boschetti, the mansion was done over for Simmons in a primarily black-and-white color scheme.
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Image Credit: MLS The swoopy wrought-iron railings along the curved staircase in the double-height foyer were swapped out more contemporary linear ones, and the kitchen was redone in a modern fashion that features funky zebra-like quartz countertops.
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Image Credit: MLS The ceiling was lacquered and a glass-enclosed wine-display cabinet added in the spacious dining room, and the fireplace and the wet bar in the second-floor primary bedroom were given minimalistic makeovers.
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Image Credit: MLS The most extensive and probably costliest renovations occurred in the walk-out basement, which Simmons transformed into a sprawling leisure and recreation complex.
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Image Credit: MLS The vast semi-subterranean space includes a state-of-the-art movie lounge that showcases custom sofas and a massive fish tank.
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Image Credit: MLS There’s also a spacious kitchenette and candy room, a full-service bar, a private gaming room, and a ventilated lounge for smoking cigars (or whatever).
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Image Credit: MLS One bathroom is zhushed up with graffiti covered tiles, while Simmons’ many jerseys are mounted and displayed in a long corridor.
Some of the home’s many high-tech creature comforts include state-of-the-art audio-visual systems, a comprehensive security system, and an elevator.
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Image Credit: MLS The property stretches out over 1.78 fully irrigated and landscaped acres with a double-gated driveway that scoops around to a side-facing three-car garage. Six-foot fencing and thoughtful plantings provide privacy but somewhat surprisingly, there’s not a swimming pool. Marketing materials do state, however, the grounds include a faux-turf dog park/children’s play area.
Shortly before his surgery, Simmons filed a grievance against his former team for the nearly $20 million in salary that was withheld for the games he missed prior to being traded to the Nets. Now, while he’s holed up recuperating, he’ll have plenty of time to work through that legal tangle and to shop for a posh new pad in the New York area.