Future Watch: Markelle Fultz Rookie Basketball Cards, 76ers – With a little over two weeks until the NBA Playoffs, we’re finally getting to the top pick in the 2017-18 draft. Last summer, there was a lot of hype around Markelle Fultz. Philadelphia would trade up from the third pick to take him first overall. Along with Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons, the 76ers headed into the season with one of the most exciting young cores of players in the league. It was a slow start for Fultz, the talented point guard suffered a shoulder injury early in the season. Now he’s back, and ready to make an impact for the 76ers as they charge towards the playoffs.
Fultz grew up in the Maryland/Washington D.C. area and was drawn to basketball at an early age. While he was athletically gifted, he entered his freshman year of high school standing 5’9”. Despite his gifts, his height kept him from the varsity teams in his freshman and sophomore seasons. Fultz would eventually have a growth spurt, and entered his junior season measuring 6 feet, 3 inches. He averaged 16.8 points, 7.9 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game and was named Player of the Year in the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference. Prior to his senior season, he would make a verbal commitment to play college ball for the Washington Huskies.
If Fultz’s junior season put him on the map, his senior year would be his official breakout. Fultz improved his stats across the board, and he led his team to their second consecutive conference championship. During the summer, Fultz played for Team USA in the FIBA Americas Under-18 tournament. He led the team in scoring as the team advanced to the gold medal championship game. He dominated in that game, scoring 23 points and earned the tournament’s MVP award. He would earn 5-star college recruit rankings across the board from Scout, Rivals, 247Sports and ESPN.
In his only season at Washington, Fultz dazzled while the rest of his team fizzled. After losing Dejounte Murray and Marquese Chriss to the NBA, Fultz entered his freshman season at WU as the leader of the team. The Huskies struggled, finishing the season with a 9-22 record, but that didn’t keep the eyes of scouts off of Fultz. He went on to put up one of the best freshman seasons in Pac-12 Conference history. His 23.2 points per game in 25 games was the highest in 20 years and second in Huskies history. Fultz led his team in minutes played and assists, and finished second in rebounds per game. He was named First-team All-Pac-12 and a Third-team All-American. After the season, he declared himself eligible for the NBA draft and many analysts said he was a lock for the number one pick.
Entering the NBA draft, Fultz measured at 6’4”, 200lbs and looked every part of a franchise point guard. The only real knock on his game was his shooting motion, which he worked on while he was injured this season. His exceptional ability to play the pick and roll, along with his passing and ability to defend both guard spots made him a can’t miss number one pick. Philadelphia moved all of their chips in to draft Fultz and saw him as a great compliment to what they had built so far.
In five games this year, Fultz is averaging 18.0 minutes per contest. His per game averages are 6.8 points, 3.0 assists and 2.6 rebounds. His jump shot has been shaky, but he’s already made an impact as a passer and rebounding the ball. In his return on March 26th, he played 14 minutes and scored 10 points to go along with eight assists and four rebounds. Stunning numbers despite the limited minutes!
Being the number one pick, there’s no way Fultz would fly under the radar for collectors. Even though he’s only played in five games this season, demand for his cards has been on par with other number one picks. Despite this, now may be the time to stock up on his cards as Philadelphia heads toward a third or fourth seed in the NBA playoffs. The 76ers are going to ease him into their rotations, but he can still put up numbers in limited minutes. With many more eyes on NBA during the playoffs, fans and collectors will surely take note of Fultz’s game. If you were holding out on acquiring his rookie cards, don’t wait! They’ll only go up in value from here.
Markelle Fultz already has some great autographed rookie cards in the market. They can be found in 2017 Panini Contenders Collegiate Draft Picks Basketball. As a top draft pick, collectors can be assured to find NBA licensed rookie cards of Fultz in the complete portfolio of 2017-18 Panini NBA basketball card products during the 2017-18 NBA season.
Future Watch: Markelle Fultz Rookie Basketball Cards, 76ers – More Resources
- NBA.com Player Profile – Markelle Fultz
- Markelle Fultz – Secondary Market Pricing
- Future Watch: 2017 NBA Draft Recap, Most NBA-Ready Players
- Future Watch: 2017 NBA Summer League Top Rookie Players
- NBA.Com
Future Watch: Markelle Fultz Rookie Basketball Cards, 76ers – Image Gallery
Here’s a look at cards featuring Markelle Fultz in his Philadelphia 76ers uniform.
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