It’s been a few years since we kicked the tires on Markelle Fultz playing in Boston, and seven since he was drafted #1 overall. Fultz entered the draft in 2017 following one year at Washington and was the presumptive pick to go first in the NBA draft.
This was the era of point guards like Russell Westbrook, James Harden, Steph Curry, and Derrick Rose winning MVP’s, and Fultz seemed like a can’t miss prospect with his silky smooth jumper and game. Well we all know what happened. Danny Ainge traded down to #3 and snagged Jayson Tatum, while Fultz struggled mightily through two injury plagued seasons in Philadelphia.
Even more strange for Fultz was the complete loss of his 3-point skills. Fultz was supposed to have the 3 point game of a James Harden, but something happened and it disappeared (and has yet to return). Fultz moved on to Orlando and won the NBA’s Most Improved Player award there, but with the Magic continuing to draft point guards and Markelle continuing to miss as many games as he plays, his tenure with the Magic has come to a close.
Fultz who believe it or not just turned 26 remains one of the top remaining free agents available with training camp around the corner. In today’s NBA it’s really hard to play non-shooters, especially if you are a guard, so Fultz has a limited ceiling due to his ongoing 3-point shooting woes. If he ever got back the stoke he had prior to entering the NBA, his ceiling would be much much higher.
The Celtics are set at the point guard position with Derrick White, Jrue Holiday, and Payton Pritchard, but the first two are 30 and 34 years old respectively, so another guard for insurance isn’t a horrible idea. Also White and Holiday just played late into the playoffs as the Celtics made (and won) the NBA Finals and then played in the 2004 Olympic Games which recently concluded, so a little more rest in the regular season couldn’t hurt for the pair.
With the lone exception of Xavier Tillman Sr, Boston is loaded with nothing but shooters so Fultz’ non-shooting wouldn’t cause as much of an issue as it has in Philadelphia and Orlando. The uber athletic Fultz has shown enough flashes during his five seasons in Orlando that it would be intriguing to see what he could do surrounded by shooters.
Fultz would have to accept the vet minimum to play in Boston as well as likely turning down offers of more playing time elsewhere. Of course the biggest knock on Fultz right now is that you can’t rely on him staying healthy. One could argue for a vet minimum player at the end of the bench that rewards still outweigh the risks, but it’s a valid concern.
Fultz at #1 overall turned out to be a bust. Fultz on a big ticket contract turned out to be an overpay. Fultz as your starter turned out to unreliable. But Fultz as a vet minimum impact player off the bench, which teams with very top heavy contracts like the Celtics need to fill out rosters? I could maybe see it.
