It’s a sign of how far Markelle Fultz has come that his first shot in Monday night's preseason game against the Orlando Magic wasn’t really a big deal. Sure, the Wells Fargo Center crowd loved his pull-up jumper from the left wing, but that’s the new normal for Fultz.
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What he did later in the first quarter, however, did qualify as a big deal. After missing a baseline three-pointer a couple minutes earlier, Fultz lined up another long range jumper. This one went down.
As Sixers fans know, Fultz, hampered by a shoulder injury and the unsightly shot that accompanied it, didn’t make any three-pointers as a rookie.
It’s not the boldest prediction to say this season will be a little different.
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Here are some observations from the Sixers' 120-114 win over the Magic:
• Fultz played the most of any Sixer, 24 minutes. He shot 5 for 12, including four made jumpers. Playing alongside Ben Simmons is still a work in progress, but the two appear to be developing a sense for how to co-exist, with Simmons getting more comfortable distributing from the elbow and out of the post. The two both pushed the ball without hesitation whenever they grabbed a rebound.
It was noticeable that Fultz got caught on top of numerous screens, although that’s not a major concern on the Sixers. Fultz has the length to recover well, and he has Embiid patrolling the paint behind him as insurance. After an incredible chase-down block in the preseason opener, Fultz had another impressive swat Monday night.
Unlike last season, there's no second thoughts now when Fultz has a chance to take a jumper.
“That is the thing I was most pleased with," head coach Brett Brown said. "There was zero hesitation. And there hasn’t been for a month. He may not have made all the shots, but he sure didn’t back away from any of them. It’s a statement. I think it’s a real statement.”
As for Fultz, it's pretty simple in his mind. After plenty of trial and error repairing his jumper with trainer Drew Hanlen (see story), he feels confident in his shot. When the chance presents itself, he's going to let it fly.
"I put a lot of work in this summer to be comfortable shooting threes, shooting my shots, being confident in the shots I want to take," Fultz said. "Coming into this game, I felt comfortable taking my shots, and I had the opportunity.”
For some non-Fultz observations including Joel Embiid, Landry Shamet and Jerryd Bayless, click here.