The Nets ruled out star Ben Simmons through the rest of the regular season and next week's play-in tournament, putting his availability for the 2022 season in serious doubt. Simmons, who the Nets acquired from the 76ers on February 10, has yet to make his debut for Brooklyn because of a herniated disc in his lower spine. Simmons reportedly received a steroid epidural to help ease the pain a little over 2 weeks ago, at which time the ProBasketballDocs, including former Bulls' team doctor John Hefferon, cast doubt on whether he would play for the Nets at all this season. Simmons recently began participating in individual workouts again after 2 weeks of immobilization to accommodate the epidural shot. The Docs specified 2 potential roadmaps for Simmons: a successful epidural, 2 weeks of no movement, and a ramp-up period leading to a likely regular season debut, or a failed shot that would spell an entire season off the court and potential offseason surgery. It remains to be seen which path he is taking, but the recent news is not ideal for the 25-year-old.The Nets, 40-38, have lost 2 games in a row and dropped to the No. 10 seed, meaning they will likely have to play 2 games to qualify for the playoffs. Simmons was to be the final piece for Brooklyn, who will now have Kyrie Irving for home games this season. Following a 43-point performance on March 26, Irving is averaging 21.4 points and 6.4 assists on 37.6% shooting in the last 5 games as a full-time player.