Markelle Fultz to play for first time in months vs. Nuggets

After missing the last six months due to injury, No. 1 overall pick Markelle Fultz will be making his triumphant return to the Philadelphia 76ers on Monday.

A lot has happened in the world in the last six months. All the while, No. 1 overall pick by the Philadelphia 76ers in point guard Markelle Fultz hasn’t played. He’s been on the mend with a shoulder ailment, not so quietly working on his jump shot.

Well, guess what, NBA world? Fultz will be back in action on Monday night for the 76ers when they host the Denver Nuggets. He last played on Oct. 23. Fultz has thus far appeared in four NBA games where he is averaging 6.0 rebounds, 2.3 rebounds and 1.8 assists.

Though Fultz will return, he will be coming off the bench, where he will be backing up top rookie point forward in Ben Simmons. Fultz will not be on a minutes restriction, but will only be playing in his first game since the fall. Don’t expect anything to extravagant out of him, but maybe the occasional jump shot.

Philadelphia originally traded up from No. 3 to No. 1 to draft Fultz out of Washington. The division rival Boston Celtics had no problem with trading back, as they were totally comfortable with taking small forward Jayson Tatum out of Duke with that swapped selection.

The 76ers have clinched their first playoff berth since The Process. They are 42-30 through their first 72 games in 2017-18. Philadelphia would be the No. 4 seed in the Eastern Conference Playoffs if the season ended today. The 76ers would host a feisty Philadelphia 76ers in the first round.

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Getting back Fultz probably does more for his morale than anything. Philadelphia was already a good team without him. Brett Brown was already a solid coach. Joel Embiid is an All-Star and Simmons will be a finalist for Rookie of the Year. Nevertheless, adding a talent like Fultz back into the equation could inject an interesting wrinkle into Philadelphia’s playoff plans. Here’s to him being back to good here on Monday night.