ESPN- The agent for Philadelphia 76ers guard Markelle Fultz changed his explanation Tuesday night on the treatment the No. 1 overall pick has received on his right shoulder, revising his earlier statement that fluid was drained from it during the preseason.
"He had a cortisone shot on Oct. 5, which means fluid was put into his shoulder -- not taken out," agent Raymond Brothers told ESPN on Tuesday night. "My intention earlier was to let people know that he's been experiencing discomfort. We will continue to work with (Sixers general manager) Bryan Colangelo and the medical staff." Cortisone shots are used to relieve pain and inflammation. Sixers officials confirmed to ESPN a treatment took place several weeks ago and Fultz's inflammation and symptoms have improved. The Sixers have been working with Fultz on his shooting mechanics, which have been altered with the shoulder irritation. In an interview earlier Tuesday, Brothers told ESPN that "Markelle had a shoulder injury and fluid drained out of the back of his shoulder. He literally cannot raise up his arms to shoot the basketball. He decided to try and fight through the pain to help the team. He has a great attitude. We are committed to finding a solution to get Markelle back to 100 percent." Fultz, 19, has struggled to shoot the ball in his first four NBA games, resisting jump shots and relying almost exclusively on drives to the basket. He is shooting 33 percent (9-of-27) from the floor and 50 percent (6-of-12) from the free throw line. Off the bench, he has averaged 19 minutes. -------- I think even the most devout believers in 'The Process' would tell you it's become more than a bit of a punchline. If the promise shown by Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons is any indication then it might very well produce a quality basketball that is geared to compete in the lowly Eastern Conference for the foreseeable future. Still, the course of action put in motion by Sam Hinkie is largely just a hypothetical set of ever-changing operatives that hinge - almost exclusively - on health. The fact that a person who - prior to this year - had played 31 (insanely impressive) games in his three year career has adopted 'The Process' as his nickname is an indisputable sign that one step back can be the precursor to two steps forward. Essentially, even the most depressing of news can signal eventual development and be treated as progress, albeit facetiously by people outside of Philadelphia. In fact, I'd say there's only thing that is an absolute no-no in the Sixers' long-belated climb back into relevance, and that is playing through an injury that is obviously hampering the actively blind optimism of the unknown. I don't want to speak for Sixers fans, but - with how patient they've been with past prospects - I'd imagine the last thing they'd want to see if the #1 overall pick that their team traded up for crack the red and blue lens on their vision for the future with a broke ass, unsightly shooting stroke. The most redeeming quality of 'The Process' is it's fluidity, but that's not in reference to the chemical makeup of the shoulder by which it's fruition ultimately rests on. Honestly, I don't know why an agent is wasting all this time clarifying whether or not his client is getting junk taken out of his arm or put in it. If Markelle Fultz's well being is truly the thing that has him out there making Rajon Rondo look like a sharpshooter by comparison then why is he even on the floor. He plays for the one organization that historically has no problem deciding to run it back next year before this year has even hit it's stride. Sam Hinkie didn't become a sacrificial lamb and his career didn't die so that a 19 year old with a bum shoulder could sabotage the blueprint of the house he planned to build with the incessant bricking of free throws. So Markelle Fultz should take some time off to heal whatever it is that has him out there looking like Andre Roberson in a score-first combo-guard's body.
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