Markelle Fultz’s mystery is all anyone can talk about with Orlando Magic

Markelle Fultz made an appearance at NBA Summer League and quickly became the fascination of the national audience. He is all anyone can talk about.

The gravity of the conversation changed the moment the NBATV cameras spotted the 6-foot-4 point guard. The one who has not played since December and has had everyone hanging on every tweet, every mention, every question, every Instagram video or anything.

The flow of information about Markelle Fultz has been slow. The player with the tantalizing talent and potential who has not quite reached those heights because of injury, a mental block, raised expectations or some combination of everything.

Markelle Fultz is one of the most polarizing figures in basketball. Some believing he is simply seeking an explanation to avoid admitting the yips. Some believing he has a legitimate injury that was difficult to diagnose. He fits whatever cultural norm or narrative you want to create.

The Orlando Magic have done little to shine a light on where Fultz is at. Those who want to plan the Magic’s 2020 roster from the outside do not quite know what to expect from Fultz. They will not even firmly commit to him playing in training camp.

So there he was in the gym, in front of all the cameras for the first time since the season ended. Like an animal in the wild, there was fascination.

Far more fascination than the Orlando Magic’s 84-79 loss to the Denver Nuggets in their second Summer League game. Mohamed Bamba sat out the game under the Magic’s load management plan for him this summer.

Fultz had injected him somewhat into the news during the weekend.

He posted video of himself on his Instagram story training at the Mamba Sports Academy near Los Angeles. Others who were training with him posted some boomerang video of him shooting jumpers.

Whether they went in or not was unclear. But that is, for many, the first time anyone had seen him with a basketball in his hands.

The Magic also seemed to be a bit clearer as everyone asked about Fultz and why he was not playing in Summer League.

During Friday’s game against the San Antonio Spurs, coach Steve Clifford said plainly Markelle Fultz is not ready for 5-on-5 play. It was the clearest statement of his progress anyone within the organization has given.

He reiterated the team is happy with his progress and his work ethic. But he said the Magic did not feel he was ready to play in this environment.

Magic general manager John Hammond joined the broadcast during Sunday’s game against the Nuggets and answered the question directly again.

The idea is they want to make sure when Fultz returns that he returns for good. So they are not putting a time table on him to make sure he progresses without the pressure of a date to return.

That is not too different from what Magic officials have said recently on Fultz. But that with the other information that has leaked onto the Internet and it feels like there are signs of optimism about what Fultz can give them this year.

But again, there is no timetable that he will return. And the Magic are not going to give one any time soon.

Orlando is going to let the true progress he is making operate behind closed doors. When the team gathers again for camp, they will get full answers.

The Fultz mystery will continue to consume everyone. The promise that comes with Fultz and the circumstances of his departure from the Philadelphia 76ers still provides a juicy story. The Magic can try to give him some anonymity, but everyone wants to know about him and where he stands.

The questions will not subside until he is on the court or until he is out of the league.

At Summer League, Fultz was walking around to support his teammates — he posted on Instagram a photo of himself with former Magic two-way player Troy Caupain. By all accounts, his new teammates like Fultz the person even if they have never seen Fultz the player.

He is continuing to go about his work.

But everyone wants to see Fultz and get these questions answered. And with the entire league in Las Vegas, Fultz’s presence only raised those questions further. Especially with a game that did not have a lot of intrigue going on the court at the time.

On the court, the Magic made a spirited effort to come back from a double-digit deficit. But they were never able to string enough stops together. They turned the ball over too much in an overall sloppy game.

But all eyes were on Fultz as the clock wound down. The greatest addition to the Magic’s roster, the young player who could have the biggest impact on the team’s prospects, was on the sidelines watching.

And everyone wants to know when they will see him again.

Orlando Magic

Other Summer League Notes

—Erik McCree continued to impress with his ability to score, leading the team with 17 points on 6-for-14 shooting. He was good at getting to the basket and forcing some of his shots. It was not the most efficient game for him. But there were not a whole lot of other players contributing anything positive consistently.

This was a sloppy Summer League game with a lot of turnovers. Orlando did not look particularly organized on either end throughout the game. McCree was guilty of that too with four turnovers himself. But that was par for the course.

McCree has been the brightest player on the perimeter. He is producing and scoring a ton of points. That is a positive step for him. But that is something everyone knows he can do. His 3-point shot is still a bit suspect and he is not creating much for others. But McCree’s defense might be better than advertised.

This game will not help anyone make any decisions, but he has been solid through two games.

–DaQuan Jeffries, for his part, has been something of a disappointment. He is not making the impact everyone thought he might coming out of the NBA Draft. He finished with 13 points on 4-for-9 shooting and had four turnovers. That part is not good.

But one of Jeffries selling points is his 3-point shooting and overall athleticism. This game showed what Jeffries can do as a shooter. And that is certainly encouraging. He was key for the Magic keeping the game close and making their push to get back into the game.

–The Orlando Magic held Mohamed Bamba out of the game, citing the team’s load management program. Bamba told the NBATV broadcast he was feeling good after the game Friday and was ready to go. It certainly does not seem like the Magic fear any relapse of his injury or any other soreness.

The Magic have been cautious with injuries. The plain fact might be Orlando saw exactly what it wanted in Bamba’s solid 15-point effort on Friday. There may not be a whole lot more for him to get out of Summer League other than continuing to build on his conditioning.

Expect Bamba to play at least one more game — although the Magic said they do not have a specific plan for him, it appears they are only having him play every other game.

The Orlando Magic are back in action on Tuesday against the Miami Heat.