The Curious Case of Markelle Fultz’s Missing Jumper: How His Shot Got so Screwed up

Over the past year, the Sixers have been at the center of one of the most bizarre sports stories in recent memory. No, we don’t mean the one about their former GM getting fired for putting his own players on blast from a burner Twitter account. And we’re not talking about Zhaire Smith missing his rookie season this year because he had an allergic reaction after eating a sesame seed. Of course, we’re referring to the curious case of Markelle Fultz’s missing jumper, the story of how the No. 1 overall pick in last year’s draft struggled to shoot a basketball in the time between being drafted and stepping onto the floor for his first NBA game.

The situation took a new turn this week, when it was announced that after meeting approximately 10 specialists Fultz had been diagnosed with thoracic outlet syndrome, which is a *consults WebMD* group of disorders around the collarbone that can cause pain and numbness in the shoulders, neck, and fingers. He’ll miss at least the next 3 to 6 weeks while rehabbing in Los Angeles.

So how did we get here? I think we better start from the beginning.