‘Foles’? Not exactly: Sixers unleash Fultz
Fans greet top pick in win over Denver
PHILADELPHIA — Markelle Fultz heard 20,000 fans chanting “Fultz! Fultz! Fultz!” and for a fleeting moment he thought they were serenading Philly’s most popular athlete.
“I thought they were saying ‘Nick Foles,’” Fultz said of the Super Bowl MVP for the champion Philadelphia Eagles. “Then I realized it, and it was pretty dope. These fans are great, and I love them.”
The Sixers and their fans wanted the No. 1 draft pick to play, and — after five often-confusing months — they got him.
The 19-year-old Fultz scored 10 points and had eight rebounds in his first game since October, helping the Philadelphia 76ers beat the Denver Nuggets 123-104 on Monday.
The first selection of the 2017 draft shot an airball, had three shots blocked and artfully attacked the lane, flashing glimpses of what has made him a mystery project and prominent prospect.
With Philadelphia having clinched a playoff berth for the first time since 2012, Fultz decided the time was right to return from the injured shoulder and broken confidence that had cost him all but four games of his rookie season.
Fultz was on a media blackout in his absence and said nothing in his public return to clarify his situation.
He basically ignored the first two questions about his shoulder and instead thanked teammates and coaches for their support during his rehabilitation.
Why was today the day to play? “Just woke up and it was that day,” he said.
His next two answers were as empty as his stat line since October.
Did he do something to hurt his shoulder or just feel soreness?
Fultz rubbed his face and stared straight without talking and grabbed a towel someone tossed him. His wiped his face during a few more seconds of awkward silence.
Why not talk about the injury? Blank stare.
“He looked confident,” coach
Brett Brown said. “I thought it was a real, sort of bold, gutsy effort that he made given where he was now where he is.”
At Charlotte, N.C., Kemba Walker had 11 of his 31 points and three assists in overtime for Charlotte, which won its fourth straight. Trey Burke had 42 points on 19-for-31 shooting and 12 assists for New York.
At Minneapolis, Wayne Selden scored 23 points for Memphis, which made 15 of 31 3-pointers in halting a 17-game road skid. Minnesota fell to 6-7 since All-star Jimmy Butler was lost to a knee injury.
At Detroit, Reggie Jackson had 20 points to lead six scorers in double figures for Detroit, which won for the fourth time in five games but trails Miami by five games for the East’s final playoff spot.
At Phoenix, Jayson Tatum scored 23 points for Boston, which won its fourth straight but lost Marcus Morris to a right ankle sprain after he scored 20 points through three quarters.
Hornets 137, Knicks 128, OT — Grizzlies 101, Timberwolves 93— Pistons 112, Lakers 106 — Celtics 102, Suns 94 —