Washington Basketball Markelle Fultz needs Brett Brown coaching

Markelle Fultz played for the Washington Huskies under head coach Lorenzo Romar. But watch his progress under Philadelphia 76ers head coach Brett Brown

It’s official now. The Philadelphia 76ers have selected Washington guard Markelle Fultz with the top overall pick of the 2017 NBA Draft. Many presume that a top pick comes NBA ready, and will begin pumping out double doubles from the moment the buzzer sounds to start game one.

Don’t be too optimistic folks.

Markelle Fultz has incredible talent and dizzying heights to his full potential. But he is a rookie on his first day with his new team.  He has only just met some of his teammates, his coaches, and his new gymnasium.  He came from a loosely coached program which was the equivalent of a shotgun blast on the court.  Point and shoot.

Not Fully Developed In College

Washington Huskies coach Lorenzo Romar could recruit as well as any NCAA college basketball coach. But the entire X’s and O’s scheming was not a strong suit.

With the Philadelphia 76ers, the pace will be the same. But roles are more defined, and defensive expectations are much greater. That will need to be practiced, trained, and learned.  Learning requires some failure to truly happen.  There will be bumps in the road. But like everything else, that is all part of a required process to build players into a team.

Brown develops again

Philadelphia 76ers head coach Brett Brown has not had a deep veteran team to work with. In fact, just the opposite. The roster of the Philadelphia 76ers has been inordinately young, inexperienced, and unhealthy.  The team seemed often to be constructed more to meet the underlying deals to bring that player to the team, than about the overall fit to any semblance of an NBA roster.

Sir Charles In Charge

Regardless of who was on the roster, Brett Brown coached discipline, perseverance, effort, and optimism.

In the 2016-2017 season, success happened because the team became more cohesive. Player skillsets are beginning to compliment one another.  But part of that is the core is forming. Player turnover is beginning to slow down somewhat.

Players not retained

In the past, few players remained as their contracts expired.  Many fans convinced themselves that was due to the lack of coaching from Brown. But the Philadelphia 76ers head coach proved his mettle last season.

The progress of Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot happened thanks to Brett Brown’s willingness to coach TLC through his rookie mistakes.

Now Brown must marshal the most talented, albeit young, roster he has ever had.   And he must do it in a way that shows positive progress through the season. He must forge a cohesive team around the simultaneous debuts of two top NBA draft picks.  All the while managing minutes on Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons, and others.

Patience

The Philadelphia 76ers waited two years for the debut of Joel Embiid. The team waited a year for the debut of Ben Simmons. Now the team must exert some patience while Brown folds Fultz in the mix.

Air Alamo

On the Washington Huskies, Markelle Fultz was the bona fide leader of the team.  On the Philadelphia 76ers, that is not clearly defined.  Of course, this is currently Joel Embiid’s team. Embiid’s personality runs the social media and the fan perception.  But the quiet strength of this roster may be Robert Covington. He is the defender who listens more to his inner voice than to the crowds. T.J. McConnell and Richaun Holmes are players whose emotions run on the surface throughout the game.

But Ben

And then, there is the unknown quality of Ben Simmons. His role as potential cerebral assassin on the basketball court is untested.  But the team continues confidently towards the future.  So what role is left for Markelle Fultz?  A James Harden like role. A “plenty of offense” type role. Scoring. Thankfully, that is actually a role well suited for the young man.

Over time, that role will grow deeper and require more qualities. For this year, simply working on scoring  from multiple ranges with multiple shots is enough.

Coaching Goals

He’s not even into the gym and I’m already talking about his goals for this season? You bet! He’s the number one draft pick, and if fans are not content about his on-court results there will be noise made.  So what are realistic goals for the young rookie?  I can think of three:

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Goal I:   Emphasize Defense 
Then
Goal II:  Work on Three-Point Accuracy (36 percent or better)
Then
Goal III:  Average 25.0 minutes per game

Why these three?  After all, the top pick of the NBA Draft and the first year goals are defense, three-point accuracy, and minutes per game?

Let me explain.

Coaching upside off the charts

The Washington Huskies Men’s Basketball team head coach Lorenzo Romar was not a strong coach in terms of plays and schemes.  He attracted great talent but failed to translate those talents into wins. After a 9-22 season, despite the presence of Fultz, the team hired a new basketball coach.

Markelle Fultz spent a year working to enhance his basketball palette.  But much of what he does on the court is self-induced.  He manufactures the shots he made. Now he must take that soloist performance and integrate with the Philadelphia 76ers orchestra.

Goal I: Emphasize Defense

The Philadelphia 76ers team begins with defense. From a defensive rebound to a steal, that triggers the teams passing up-court to the open shooter.   On the Philadelphia 76ers, the rookie will be called upon to initiate the transition game.

This is virgin territory for the young basketball player. While he has defended and initiated a fast break, it was clear that was not a primary responsibility in college. There, he move the ball up the court and took it to the basket or found an open shooter.

Now, he will need more focus on the defense.  Brown will transform his defense initially to help Fultz’s rookie psyche.  Defense builds confidence, where streaky offensive shooting does not. Defense will also enhance the play of his teammates.

Helps defend the paint

Fast moving quick-handed Fultz defending driving guards is solid reinforcements for the slow-to-pivot-tank Jahlil Okafor near the basket. Teams know they can score in the paint by sending multiple threats at Okafor. Fultz, guarding the guard, can help track and reject the faster moving offensive players. Allowing Okafor to focus on his man can help restore his shaken defense and confidence.

But it’s all for naught if Fultz cannot score.

Goal II:  Work on Three-Point Accuracy (36 percent or better)

With Joel Embiid at center and Ben Simmons working the inside, the team will need a hot handed shooter on the outside. So far, much of that accuracy came from volume and game flow. With more stars, greater heights, and seasoned defenders, the playing field caches up.  Now, it will take setting up and shooting.

There is an entirely new rhythm to Markelle Fultz’s offense as a Philadelphia 76ers player. He will not be a primary option frequently at first.  The post game will be dominated by Joel Embiid. Driving to the basket for layups and the physical shots in the paint will fall to Ben Simmons.   Markelle Fultz will be asked to provide a perimeter threat.

At other times, he will be asked to run the offense.

Versatile Roles

Still other times, he will share the load of running the plays and bringing the ball up.  Brett Brown will love the versatility of Fultz on this team.  But the true success factor will be scoring.  The Philadelphia 76ers were 24th in three-point accuracy at 34 percent shooting as a team. While the San Antonio Spurs led all team at 39.1 percent, the Sixers are shooting for a much more respectable league mid-point of 35.8 percent.  To get there, the team will need Fultz to elevate the team average.

As a college freshman, he did so handily. In fact, he shot 41.3 percent from three-point distance. But he ran the team offense, and many three’s were stop and pops or throw backs to him as he set up in the corner.

Goal III:  Average 25.0 minutes per game

Markelle Fultz averaged 35.7 minutes per game in college, but played in just 25 games.  Now, he will need to pace himself for an 82 game season.

There is no reason to expect him to compete with Dario Saric or T.J. McConnell for over 80 games this season.  In fact, it would be wise to give him some games off as he builds up to NBA endurance.

But the more important playing stat is minutes per game.  And with a talented rookie guard who can easily slide in either as the point or shooting guard, he will need to get minutes when he sees the court.  He cannot be stuck hoping for minutes like Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot last season.

Time Management

Brett Brown is a pro at meting out time.  He prefers to give players nights off rather than sit them on a bench for impossibly few minutes. He’s had years of practice.  But he will need to work closely with Markelle Fultz.

Fultz is preparing to be a star for tomorrow. So he will not only need minutes, but KEY minutes. He will need to be sent into game winning scenarios until he earns his first buzzer beater like Robert Covington or T.J. McConnell.  Like the 2017 team, the team will find success much more readily after Brett Brown sees to Fultz winning a game.

Make no mistakes, earning the top spot in the 2017 NBA Draft is all talent of Markelle Fultz. But where that talent takes him from here is up to Brett Brown.  Right now, Brown is one of the best coaches at developing a player’s full potential in the league. And furthermore, Fultz needs everything iota of coaching Brown can send his way.

Next: Which Sixer is next year’s Rookie of the Year favorite, Simmons or Fultz?

Fultz can be good on his own. He’s proven that. But he has the potential to be one of the best the NBA has ever seen.  In summary, to get there, he needs the coaching discipline, patience, and persistence for the next couple of years. On one hand,  Fultz is the perfect clay. On the other hand, Brown is the master sculpture. In the end, building an elite basketball player is an artform.