Magic's Markelle Fultz returns after more than a year on the sidelines
After more than a year sidelined, Markelle Fultz made his long awaited return to the Orlando Magic, in a win over the Indiana Pacers on Monday night.
It's been a long road to recovery for the Magic's promising talent, with his return one can only hope that he can stay fit and injury free.
Orlando Magic's Markelle Fultz finally returns
The Orlando Magic haven't had many reasons to celebrate this season but on Monday night they most definitely did. After almost 14 months Markelle Fultz made his long awaited return to the court in a game against the Indiana Pacers. Fultz played his last game back in January of 2021 against the Cleveland Cavaliers. Sadly during that contest, he tore the ACL in his left knee and as a result found himself traveling a long and difficult road to recovery.
How did Fultz do on the night? With 16 minutes clocked after coming off the bench, Fultz put in a credible shift with 10 points, six assists and two rebounds while hitting five of his seven attempts from the floor. Indeed, his contribution helped the Magic to pull off a much needed over the Pacers by a score of 119-103. Though his numbers weren't exceptionally high, one must remember that we're talking about a player who has been out of competition for more than a year. With that in mind Fultz's effort on Monday night is more than worthy of praise. It has of course been a turbulent time for a player that certainly has a lot of potential. Plagued by injury, Fultz has shown a high level of productivity when he's managed to stay healthy.
What was the journey like for Markelle Fultz?
After Monday's game Fultz opened up about his process during his rehabilitation and more over how he dealt with it emotionally. "Just take it one day at a time," Fultz said. "Focus on that day. Try to get better each and every day, rely on the people that's in your support system, believe in god and anything is possible. That's all I did. I got a great group of guys around me, a great organization, so they made it as easy as possible for me."
A former first overall pick, Fultz went on to explain the feelings he experienced when he finally returned to his team. "It was huge," Fultz said. "I think the biggest part about it is, it was no stress, no thinking. Just going out there being myself. My teammates helped me play to my strengths. We just all went out there and tried to have fun and competed and got a [win]." Indeed, winning is something that the Magic have found hard to do this season. With Fultz's return, however, one has to imagine that they can begin taking the steps to change that as they rebuild during the coming off season.