Every week this season, we'll be taking a look at Markelle Fultz and how the 2017 No. 1 overall pick is progressing through his second NBA season.
This isn't the start Fultz wanted.
The 20-year-old hasn't been bad, but he also hasn't stood out much in the first three games of this season. He's averaging 8.3 points a contest and shooting just 33 percent from the field.
It was also slightly troubling to see Fultz replaced by T.J. McConnell to close out the team's nail-biting win against the Magic. That seemed like the perfect time to "grow" Fultz, throwing him in a high-leverage situation and seeing if he could make it out the other side.
But this is where we are with the 2017 No. 1 overall pick. He hasn't yet proven that he'll be able to help this team win basketball games, but he's way too young to just bury already - oddly something the media is doing before the fans. It's a fine line for Brett Brown deciding what's more important between beating Orlando in October or letting Fultz take his lumps.
Think about it like this: If this was Fultz's rookie season, would we be jumping on him already? If the team didn't just win 52 games and a playoff series, would there be this added pressure on Fultz? This scenario is new to Brown as well. He's never coached a team with high expectations so he's always been able to focus on development.
It's also unfortunate that Fultz hasn't shown the ability to play with Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons. When Bryan Colangelo traded up for Fultz it was with the idea that this trio would lead the franchise for the next decade or so. When Simmons and Fultz have been on the court together, Fultz has been invisible. In 45 minutes together, Fultz and Simmons have a minus-14.6 net rating.
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Though it's still very early, this is a troubling trend.
One of the stats I'll be checking every few days. pic.twitter.com/DSawyrjYdj— Zach Lowe (@ZachLowe_NBA) October 22, 2018
What Fultz has done well is facilitate. He's averaging 4.7 dimes a game and has 14 assists to just five turnovers on the young season. If Simmons misses time (he's questionable Tuesday vs. the Pistons with lower-back tightness), Fultz could take over as the team's starting point guard.
This could allow Fultz to gain confidence with the ball In his hands and leading the offense. Maybe it'll allow Fultz and Embiid to build chemistry. This of course could be tricky when Simmons comes back or if he doesn't miss any time at all.
Last but not least is the shot. It looks significantly better than it did last season (he hit a three!). The shots just aren't quite falling yet. You have to love the confidence he's showing in chucking up 11 shots a game. Quite frankly he needs to keep doing it. Eventually some of these shots are going to start falling. Hopefully sooner rather than later.
Unfortunately, it seems the roller-coaster ride is just beginning. What Fultz, Brown and the Sixers need are more games like the home opener against the Bulls. In that game, Fultz did something he did quite often in college. Off a high pick-and-roll with Embiid, Fultz used the screen to rise up and knock down a 13-foot jumper. He did this routinely at Washington.
The Sixers are in luck as the schedule begins to soften up in November. Hopefully Fultz can feast on lesser competition to prepare him for the stiffer tests that follow.
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