The Ben Simmons era was a disaster from the jump

The Nets used up their last portion of relevance on Thursday with the announcement that Ben Simmons would be out for the rest of the season.

And though there is one year remaining on his contract, the team’s statement made plenty of people wonder whether the 27-year-old would ever play for the Nets — or anyone else — again.

It’s a fair question, especially considering Simmons’ history.

It probably shouldn’t come as a surprise, considering that when the Nets acquired him just over two years ago in the megadeal that sent James Harden to Philadelphia, Simmons already was showing a knack for being unavailable.