The Sixers had an open scrimmage over the weekend, and one of the big storylines was that Ben Simmons looked dominant (and while Joel Embiid danced around the court he did not play).
But watch the video and you notice something else — Jerryd Bayless and other Sixers defenders played off No. 1 pick, Markelle Fultz. I mean way off. As in “I dare you to shoot that jumper” off. Fultz shot 41.3 percent from three in college, he should be a threat from the NBA arc, at least enough for defenders to respect him out there. So why is Fultz getting the Rajon Rondo/Tony Allen treatment from teammates?
Fultz tweaked his jump shot and free throw stroke over the summer and it has raised some concerns. Brett Brown said he was not comfortable with it, as reported by David Murphy of the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Fultz seems to have worked on a quicker release from a higher release point, but it’s not where it needs to be yet.
It’s a concern because when Fultz and Simmons share the court Fultz will work primarily off the ball, and he will need to show he’s a good spot-up shooter. This is from Brown again, talking to Jessica Camerato at NBC Sports Philadelphia.
Fultz also changed his free throw stroke.
Interesting how dramatically different Markelle Fultz's FT stroke looks here compared to @ UW (65%). Has lowered release point considerably. pic.twitter.com/6REIFX0qtR
— Mike Schmitz (@Mike_Schmitz) September 28, 2017
Fultz is a 19-year-old rookie who is going to have ups and downs, and that includes with his shot. There will be streaks and slumps. There also is a lot of time to work on the weaknesses in his game — even the ones that are self-inflicted. I doubt this is a long-term problem, but it’s all something to watch.