Philadelphia 76ers: Don’t fall for point guard Shake Milton again

In the maiden voyage of the Philadelphia 76ers‘ preseason campaign, Doc Rivers gave the people what they wanted: Tyrese Maxey at point guard.

*spoiler alert* It went bad.

Now granted, that wasn’t all on Maxey. The team’s Big 3 of Joel Embiid, Tobias Harris, and Ben Simmons (duh) were all out for the game, as was Charles Bassey, but the second-year point guard didn’t quite rise above his situation and turn in a fantastic performance versus Scottie Barnes and company.

In the preseason home opener, the first of the Kate Scott-era, Rivers tried something different versus the very same opponent, giving the starting nod to Shake Milton at the one. This time, things went a whole lot better both on the court and on the scoreboard but considering the team was at full strength sans Simmons, that wasn’t entirely on the pride of SMU either.

Do the Sixers have a true blue point guard in the vein of Chris Paul? No. Do they have a pair of viable young players worthy of competing for a spot in the starting five? Yes, and Rivers is reportedly going to let them duke it out in a good old fashion Philly point guard competition.

*sigh* How many times are the Philadelphia 76ers going to try the “Shake Milton at point guard” experiment before they realize it just doesn’t work?

The Philadelphia 76ers can’t consistently rely on point guard Shake Milton.

The Philadelphia 76ers’ roster is full.

They have 15 players on guaranteed contracts, two more on two-way contracts, and an intriguing 18th man in Shaquille Harrison, who probably won’t make the team but is a fun player to have in the Sixers’ oeuvre moving forward.

Why, you may ask, is this particularly relevant to the topic at hand? Well, because of the Sixers’ roster situation, they can’t take on any more players via trade than they give up and would instead have to make corresponding moves to accommodate a bigger package should it present itself.

For many a fan of Philly’s finest, the most logical player to ship out of town in such a move has been Shake Milton.

On paper, this makes sense. Despite averaging 13 points in 23.2 minutes of action a night, Milton’s season was incredibly hot and cold, and he ultimately fell out of Doc Rivers’ postseason rotation. While Milton still made it onto the court from time to time and even turned in a signature performance versus the Atlanta Hawks, his future with the team felt borderline at best, even if his incredibly team-friendly contract runs through 2022-23.

So naturally, when Rivers declares that Milton had an inside track to start at the one over Tyrese Maxey, it gave pause to many a fan of the Philadelphia 76ers.

Why? I mean, did you watch the Sixers’ 2020 playoff run?

To Milton’s credit, there are a lot of things he does well. He’s a certified scorer with an ability to attack the hoop from anywhere, a talented sparkplug coming off the bench, and, at 6-foot-5, 205 pounds, has the size to be a switchable defender 1-3.

With that being said, Milton just isn’t a good primary offensive facilitator. Over the past three seasons, Milton has only averaged 2.6 assists per game versus 1.3 turnovers. While that isn’t necessarily bad for a player with an average usage rate of 22, it’s far from what you’d like to see from a guard tasked with getting others involved in the offense too.

Disregarding statistics for a moment, Milton also just isn’t a very sophisticated passer. He seldom places the ball in an advantageous position, especially to Joel Embiid in the paint, and lacks the definitive gusto to confidently execute plays as the team’s primary facilitator.

Mind you, that doesn’t mean Milton couldn’t still be useful in a more expansive on-ball role. Even if his 3 point shot efficiency is incredibly volatile, Milton is still one of the team’s few players who can set up a defender one-on-one and get his own shot.

With that being said, is that really what a team wants in their starting point guard, an iso player who looks to score far more often than dish? Mind you, Tyrese Maxey’s game isn’t all that more advanced, as he too averaged fewer assists than Tobias Harris in 2020-21, but he at least tries to get his fellow players involved on the offensive end of the court, even if that’s largely due to his still-developing offensive game.

Ideally, both Tyrese Maxey and Shake Milton would benefit greatly from playing with a verified backcourt pro who can further their development as passers. Such a player would be able to play off of either, take on primary ball-handling duties in clutch situations, and provide the sort of 3-and-D floor spacing abilities that makes the latter Doc Rivers’ favorite to start moving forward. But if that player ultimately doesn’t materialize anytime soon, I’d rather roll with Maxey moving forward, as he at least tries to get his teammates involved. Better to keep Milton in a sixth-man role than chip away at the positive steps he made in 2020-21.