Ben Simmons Literally Went Fishing And Came Back A Champion

Ben Simmons has gone fishing.

No, not in the “his team got eliminated from the playoffs” kind of way. Simmons isn’t even on an NBA roster right now. He’s literally gone fishing — and somehow ended up winning a championship doing it.

On Sunday, Simmons helped the South Florida Sails capture the Sport Fishing Championship Blue Marlin Open at Walker’s Cay in the Bahamas, proving that while his jump shot may have drifted away, his fishing line apparently has not, ESPN reports.

Yes, that Ben Simmons.

The same Simmons who was drafted No. 1 overall by the Philadelphia 76ers in 2016. The same Simmons who spent years being dissected on sports talk shows, like a middle-school frog in science class. The same Simmons who somehow became the internet’s favorite punching bag every postseason. These days, however, he’s swapped boos from NBA arenas for blue marlin in turquoise Bahamian waters, and honestly, he seems significantly happier.

After becoming a free agent following the 2024-25 NBA season, Simmons quietly pivoted from hardwood to deep sea. In December 2025, the Sport Fishing Championship announced Simmons had purchased a stake in the Sails organization, with the team’s website listing him as the controlling owner. Apparently retirement hobbies now include owning fishing empires.

Simmons, who grew up fishing in Australia, said the move wasn’t random millionaire behavior.

“I have always believed that investing in what you love means you have a responsibility to help move it forward,” Simmons said at the time. “Sportfishing has given me incredible experiences, and SFC is creating a platform that treats offshore fishing like the elite sport it is.”

Translation: this man really likes fishing.

And unlike NBA fans, fish don’t yell “shoot it!” every time he touches the ball.

The Sails dominated the three-day tournament from the jump. Angler Alex Stanley put South Florida on top of the leaderboard on Day 1 after releasing the season’s first blue marlin, worth 450 points. Another marlin release later that afternoon gave the Sails a commanding early lead, and by Saturday, the team was basically treating the competition like the 2017 Golden State Warriors treated the Eastern Conference.

South Florida finished with 2,925 points — nearly 1,500 ahead of the second-place New Jersey Sea Birds.

Simmons now joins an unexpectedly growing club of sports superstars turned fishing owners. World No. 1 golfer Scottie Scheffler already tasted SFC glory when his Texas Lone Stars won last year’s Zane Grey Championship Playoffs.

Somewhere, NBA Twitter is trying to figure out whether this counts as Simmons finally showing aggression near the rim.

See social media’s reactions below.