Though the Philadelphia 76ers cannot escape injuries plaguing top draft picks, Markelle Fultz believes his shoulder is almost healed.
According to Tom Moore of the Bucks County Courier Times, the Washington product said he’s “getting close” to 100 percent.
We’re not in the training room with Fultz, so he could be telling the truth. But consider us skeptical after he admitted less than a week ago, per Jessica Camerato of NBC Sports Philadelphia, that his shoulder injury is the cause for a revamped shooting form.
Given that Fultz was a solid shooter in college, his new mechanics are frustrating. Hopefully this is simply a temporary fix for a short-term issue, because Fultz shouldn’t be laboring to make a free throw.
Again, we’re not doctors. If he’s healthy enough to play, OK. That is Philly’s call. Still, it doesn’t take a medical professional to see Fultz is uncomfortable and lacking confidence in himself at the charity stripe. He missed both attempts Wednesday.
The guard finished 5-of-9 from the floor in his regular-season debut, basically only trying to attack the basket. Compare that with his shot selection at Washington, where 72.5 percent of his shots were two- or three-point jumpers, per Hoop-Math.
For the sake of the Sixers, hopefully the fluidity of Fultz’s shot returns as his shoulder reaches 100 percent.