So... is Markelle Fultz Healthy or Not?
The Sixers will travel to Orlando on October 13th to play Markelle Fultz and the Orlando Magic in a preseason game.
Question is whether or not Markelle actually plays, because it seems like there’s still conflicting information on whether he’s actually healthy or not after sitting out the remainder of the 2018-2019 season following his trade from Philadelphia on February 7th.
Fultz, the #1 overall pick in the 2017 draft, did not play summer league ball, with Orlando General Manager John Hammond telling a local radio station in June that he had “no idea” when the combo guard would be ready, saying that the organization was being patient with the situation.
That was reiterated by head coach Steve Clifford recently, who said that the Magic didn’t have a timetable for Markelle’s return from Thoracic Outlet Syndrome, after the jump:
"We don't have a timetable for when he'll be back, but he's really doing a good job." @OrlandoMagic HC Steve Clifford gives @TermineRadio and @Jumpshot8 the latest on Markelle Fultz pic.twitter.com/N8gTv7rh3j
— SiriusXM NBA Radio (@SiriusXMNBA) July 15, 2019
Said Clifford:
“He’s been great. He’s working hard. He’s made good progress. You know, right now, we don’t have a timetable for when he’ll be back, but he’s really doing a good job.”
Interestingly enough, Caron Butler, who was represented by Markelle’s agent Raymond Brothers during his playing days, said this during an Orlando summer league game this past weekend:
Caron Butler's comments on Markelle Fultz 🔥👀 👇 pic.twitter.com/qJ4suB3lOZ
— Orlando Magic Podcast (@MagicVoicesPod) July 14, 2019
Butler, in part:
“Also, the guy that no one’s talking about, who’s healthy, who’s worked his tail off right now all summer long – Markelle Fultz. I think he’s going to be a huge addition to this ball club.”
You may remember Butler was the first person to interview Fultz while he was sitting out part of his rookie season due to scapular muscle imbalance, a TNT television appearance that annoyed everybody else in the media, since we weren’t given access to Markelle during that time. Butler is obviously trusted by the family and/or agent, which is why he keeps popping up with information on Fultz that other people aren’t reporting. Whether or not it’s accurate remains to be seen.
Markelle is also holding an August camp at his alma mater, DeMatha Catholic High School, outside of Washington D.C. If he’s healthy, cool, and if not, I guess he’ll just sort of be hanging out there, right?