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Fansided

Sixers see major progress in Markelle Fultz’s shot during preseason battle with United

By Dan Parzych

PHILADELPHIA, PA - SEPTEMBER 28: Ben Simmons #25 of the Philadelphia 76ers celebrates with Markelle Fultz #20 against Melbourne United in the first quarter in the preseason game at Wells Fargo Center on September 28, 2018 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PA - SEPTEMBER 28: Ben Simmons #25 of the Philadelphia 76ers celebrates with Markelle Fultz #20 against Melbourne United in the first quarter in the preseason game at Wells Fargo Center on September 28, 2018 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /
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The Sixers are excited to see a major difference in Markelle Fultz heading into his second season with the team, especially with an improved jump shot.

From a realistic perspective, there really wasn’t any concern over how the Sixers would look during Friday’s preseason game against Melbourne United, mainly due to the fact this game was strictly for fun, and Philadelphia had way better talent.

However, if there was one thing Sixers fans were excited to see in this matchup, it would be how Markelle Fultz would look after spending the offseason doing everything in his power to fix his jump shot.

To say Fultz’s jump shot was horrendous last year would be a huge understatement, and the former Washington star deserves plenty of credit for all the time spent with trainer Drew Hanlen over the last couple of months to improve his shot.

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One game certainly won’t decide how the 2018-19 season will go for Fultz, but seeing him play with a new level of confidence on Friday with an improved jump shot has Philadelphia fans smiling all over the place.

Even though this was only a preseason game, the fact that Brett Brown was willing to allow Fultz to start over J.J. Redick shows the Sixers head coach plans on using the guard more during his second year with the team. And when seeing how Fultz ended up scoring 14 points on 6-of-11 shooting from the field, it seems like all that work from the offseason is already paying off in a big way, although he still has a long way to go.

When looking at how quick of an impact Jayson Tatum made during his first year with the Boston Celtics, Fultz is well aware that the last thing Philadelphia wants to see happen is feel they made a mistake with their top selection from the draft in 2017.

Some Sixers fans were frustrated over Fultz’s lack of impact as a rookie, which seemed unfair at times when looking at how he was sidelined for most of the year with a shoulder injury.

However, when looking at how patient the fan base was over the years while waiting for players like Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons, waiting on Fultz shouldn’t have been a problem at all.

Friday’s game was the first of hopefully many significant contributions from Fultz in the shooting department, and it will be interesting to see if he can keep the trend going throughout the rest of the preseason.

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As mentioned before, one solid performance doesn’t mean everything is all good with Fultz since the real test will be in the regular season, but at least this preseason win over United was a big step in the right direction for the Sixers guard.