Duval vs Fultz

[ncexnyc]

Did Duval put together a season like MBIII or Carter? No he didn't, but he doesn't deserve the hate he's getting here. Let's remember he was just a freshman who plays one of the hardest positions for a young player and he also had a vision issue that wasn't detected until well into the season.

To dismiss the claim that having two bigs hurt his game is sheer folly as Allen's play seemed to take a major step-up when MBIII sat for several games with his knee injury.

Should he have returned for a 2nd year? Most definitely as I believe the new freshman would have helped his game and played to his strength.

[WNC]

Fultz had been working with the shot guru Drew Hanlen but as of this week they may not be on speaking terms.
https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/7...r-drew-hanlen/

Isaiah Thomas rips "little guy" Hanlen as having no business working with NBA players.
https://sixerswire.usatoday.com/2018...-nba-comments/

[Troublemaker]

The push shot you are talking about is from Season 1 before he was shut down for muscle soreness. His orthopedic surgeon said there was no physical damage, but a scapular imbalance that caused the soreness. After a year of therapy and relearning to shoot (documented well on the internet), he is physically healthy according to him and his team. He still shoots like something is wrong, though. He looks like he is trying to remember how to shoot each time he tries to. The yips aren't voodoo. They are psychology - a very real part of pro sports. We can't really know unless he comes out and says it, but I don't know why people are so quick to dismiss it.

Just to be clear --and I think you guys know this, but am clarifying for others-- the GIF I posted above of Fultz's pumpfake at the free throw line occurred on Monday. It's sad but after all the offseason work, he's still not trusting his form.

[JasonEvans]

I'm not so sure about that . . .

I think the top 10 of the re-draft would look like this:

1. Tatum
2. Mitchell
3. Ball
4. Fox
5. Markkanen
6. Kuzma
7. Anunoby
8. Adebayo
9. Smith
10. Isaac

You could probably slot Fultz in there right at #10 over Jonathan Isaac, but overall, Fultz looks like a huge bust so far. He has great size and athleticism for the PG position, but his feel for the game and especially his shooting are dreadful. If his shot doesn't improve, I could see him being out of the league within 5 years. Surely it will get a little better, but I don't envision him ever living up to his draft status.

You forgot John Collins, who would likely be in the top 5 or very close to it in a re-draft.

Markelle Fultz would not be a lottery pick in a redraft. He might figure it out someday, but at the moment he seems largely broken.

[kAzE]

You forgot John Collins, who would likely be in the top 5 or very close to it in a re-draft.

Markelle Fultz would not be a lottery pick in a redraft. He might figure it out someday, but at the moment he seems largely broken.

Oh good call, forgot about him. I'm not sure he's top 5, but definitely top 10.

Tatum, Mitchell, Ball, Fox, and Markkannen I think are the best 5 players. IMO, Collins is in that next tier with Dennis Smith and Kuzma. Also forgot to mention Jarrett Allen and Josh Hart who would both be taken ahead of Markelle Fultz. I think you're right, Fultz would pretty close to out of the lottery.

[elvis14]

If only Fultz had a guy on his team who is considered the consummate professional with a great work ethic and a great shot. The kind of guy who can really shoot and works his butt off to make the most of what he has.

On an somewhat unrelated note, anyone know where JJ is playing this year?

[freshmanjs]

If only Fultz had a guy on his team who is considered the consummate professional with a great work ethic and a great shot. The kind of guy who can really shoot and works his butt off to make the most of what he has.

On an somewhat unrelated note, anyone know where JJ is playing this year?

Is there any evidence that his problems have to do with work ethic?

[jimsumner]

I agree with Troublemaker, upthread. This looks like a bad case of the yips, very reminiscent of Chuck Knoblauch.

Reminds me a bit of Chris Burgess, when he was at Duke. When a ref would hand him the ball for a foul shot, Burgess would look at the ball like he had never seen one before, had no idea what to do with it and just wanted to get the whole, unpleasant process over with as quickly as possible.

[Acymetric]

Is there any evidence that his problems have to do with work ethic?

Yeah, just to clarify my position I do not think it is a problem with work ethic. I don't even think "head case" (I think someone used that term earlier) is fair. He just has some kind of mental block on shooting the ball related to some weird shoulder issue, he might never get over it, and in the meantime he does not look like a very good basketball player.

[Kedsy]

and in the meantime he does not look like a very good basketball player.

The weird part is, sometimes he does. But the Sixers gave him a second chance and he didn't grab it. I think it's sad.

[elvis14]

Is there any evidence that his problems have to do with work ethic?

Not that I'm aware of and I didn't mean to imply that he did. Previous posts were talking about a troubled shooting coach so I was being cute by referencing JJ as a mentor.

[duke4ever19]

Well, here's Markelle Fultz's new free-throw routine. I'm nicknaming it "hot potato." FYI the Chuck Hayes-style free throws are added at the end for a compare/contrast.

[DukieInBrasil]

Markelle's shooting vs Utah: 2-5 FGs, 2-4 FTs, for 6 pts, with 2 assists. Neither good nor bad, but not anything to get excited about.
For comparison, Trevon had 7 pts and 7 assists in his G-League game.

[jbay201]

Markelle's shooting vs Utah: 2-5 FGs, 2-4 FTs, for 6 pts, with 2 assists. Neither good nor bad, but not anything to get excited about.
For comparison, Trevon had 7 pts and 7 assists in his G-League game.

thats awful for the first overall round pick and that's coming off the bench against the other teams scrubs. Most of his stat lines are just like his especially against better teams. He's a bust. He isn't miraculously going to become a great shooter.

As long as Duval works on his shot, I can see him having a better NBA career after it is all said and done.

[budwom]

I wish him well, but the help he needs isn't a shooting coach, it's a psychological coach. I suspect they know that.

[WillJ]

I wish him well, but the help he needs isn't a shooting coach, it's a psychological coach. I suspect they know that.

That juggle-it-on-the-way-up free throw motion strikes me as a method that some psychologically-oriented coach has taught Fultz to keep his mind off of the actual shot...which might be a good idea. The Inner Game of Tennis was a great book in the 1970s...I wonder what the closest analog is for basketball.

[kAzE]

That juggle-it-on-the-way-up free throw motion strikes me as a method that some psychologically-oriented coach has taught Fultz to keep his mind off of the actual shot...which might be a good idea. The Inner Game of Tennis was a great book in the 1970s...I wonder what the closest analog is for basketball.

This is what I thought of first when I saw that clip:

[JasonEvans]

This is what I thought of first when I saw that clip:

I never understood why the Monstars didn't just steal Jordan's talent.

[uh_no]

I never understood why the Monstars didn't just steal Jordan's talent.

c'mon man! didn't you watch the movie? Jordan was a baseball player! Maybe they had some limit on stealing 5 people's talents at a time?

[JasonEvans]

I think the Sixers are going to deal Fultz. He is refusing to participate in games or practices until a doctor looks at his shoulder as he tries to prove that his shooting problems are physical, not mental.

Does he have much trade value at this point? As the former #1 pick, his rookie deal is still fairly expensive at $8.3 mil this season and $9.7 mil next season (2019-20 option has already been picked up). I'm sure there are teams willing to pay those salaries to see if Fultz can regain his form, but would they be willing to pay and to give up a significant asset? I sorta doubt it. I don't know if the Sixers will move Fultz or not, but I am sure they now regret not including him in a deal with the Spurs for Leonard during the off-season.

I know everyone loves to talk about how the Sixers built via the draft -- and both Embiid and Simmons seem like great picks -- but the team has had a ton of misses too in Fultz, Okafor, and Nerlens Noel (Noel isn't as bad a miss at the others). It shows what a total crapshot the draft truly is.