Nets buying out Ben Simmons to end nightmare tenure

Ben Simmons’ colossal disappointment of a Nets tenure is all but over.The point guard, who has missed 207 out of a possible 297 games across his two-plus years in Brooklyn, was finalizing a buyout with the team Friday, according to The Post’s Brian Lewis.He was ruled out of their game against the Heat earlier in the morning and listed as being away from the team.The Cavaliers and Clippers will meet with Simmons on Friday, according to ESPN, and the outlet had previously added Thursday that the Rockets were also expected to be interested in the 28-year-old.Across 33 games and 24 starts this season, Simmons collected 6.2 points, 6.9 assist and 5.2 rebounds per game on a Nets team shuffling new pieces in and out of its lineup amid trades.And while they stayed quiet at the deadline, perhaps their most consequential move occurred one day later.

It closed a chapter that dated back to the end of their Big 3. And it officially ended an era that felt like it’d unofficially reached its conclusion long before Friday....