One Sixers stud from first few weeks: Shake Milton
In nine games since his return from injury, Shake Milton is averaging 12.4 points and 3.4 assists in 25.0 minutes per game. Entrenched as the backup point guard behind Tyrese Maxey (but picking up some starts due to the Sixers’ long list of absences), Milton has looked like a completely different player this season — in the best of ways.
Milton was actively harmful for most of last season. By the playoffs, he had practically played himself out of the 10-man rotation, and there was a real push to bench him in favor of Isaiah Joe before the 2021-22 season began.
Now, any such notions have been expelled. Milton not only deserves minutes, but it’s hard to imagine him losing them even in the event of a Ben Simmons return (or trade). Doc Rivers has always expressed faith in Milton as a player, and that faith has been handsomely rewarded so far.
The 3-point shooting hasn’t quite arrived yet (28.6 percent), but that’s the thing — it hasn’t really mattered. He will only get better behind the arc, and everything else is clicking. Milton is the best passer actively on the roster, and his improved patience as a facilitator has mitigated some of the athleticism-based issues we so frequently saw last season.
On defense, Milton has never been put his massive 7-foot wingspan to better use. He’s being put in more favorable positions (matching up with more wings due to Philadelphia’s current small-ball inclinations), and in turn providing both versatility and disruptiveness to the Sixers’ defense. He is contributing steadily on both sides of the ball, and looks once again like a staple of the rotation.