Philadelphia 76ers Shut Down Rookie Guard Markelle Fultz for Three Games Due to Shoulder Injury
The Philadelphia 76ers have finally decided to sit rookie guard Markelle Fultz as he continues to deal with a right shoulder injury.
Sixers general manager Bryan Colangelo has confirmed that they would shut down Fultz for at least the next three games to let his shoulder heal, and he added that this was a mutual decision between the player and the team.
"I think that it's appropriate to take a step back, let him take a breath and get him healthy and ready to resume play hopefully next week," Colangelo said on Wednesday, via ESPN. "No one's panicking inside. The sky's not falling. Markelle Fultz is going to be a great basketball player for this organization, and we're confident that we're going to get this thing resolved," he added.
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Fultz did not play in the Sixers' 105-104 loss to the Houston Rockets at home on Wednesday, and he will also miss their road games against the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday and the Rockets on Monday.
Colangelo said there appears to be no structural damage in the rookie's right shoulder and he will be re-evaluated on Tuesday, Oct. 31.
"There's been a lot of noise out there, about the pain, about the impact on his shot, and we're just hopeful we can get this resolved once and for all," Colangelo stated.
His agent, Raymond Brothers, has also revealed that he received a cortisone shot on Oct. 5 to relieve the pain in his shoulder.
Well, a lot of basketball enthusiasts were actually surprised that it took the Sixers this long to shut him down. Fultz has been struggling badly as he tried to play through the shoulder injury. He has even altered his shot because of the discomfort in his shoulder and people have been talking about his awkward shooting form since the preseason.
Fultz was supposed to take the league by storm after he was drafted first overall in this year's draft. However, he's just not healthy right now and he shouldn't be playing until he gets better.
