Orlando Magic guard Markelle Fultz has found his home again on the basketball court

Markelle Fultz has taken a long road to play his 20th game and to score 20 points in a game. Back in his hometown, Fultz is back at home on the court.

The last time Orlando Magic guard Markelle Fultz returned home to play against his hometown team, the Washington Wizards, was his debut game as a member of the Philadelphia 76ers.

Back then, the future seemed limitless for the first overall pick. He was coming off a stellar year with the Washington Huskies where he was the runaway pick to get taken top overall.

Markelle Fultz’s debut was inauspicious too. A solid 10 points on 5-for-9 shooting in about 18 minutes of action. With the 76ers already having an established group and the visions of Fultz as the final piece, they could afford to let him ease into the game.

Fultz had a strong debut. But that would quickly change. A lot of things would change since then.

Fultz has battled shoulder problems throughout his career. He played in only 33 games through his first two seasons. There were battles between him and his team to figure out what was causing pain and keeping him from realizing his talent before he finally received a diagnosis of thoracic outlet syndrome.

It seemed like an uphill battle for Fultz to get his career going in an upward trajectory. But the Magic believed he would do just that. They believed he could still find his way back to the court and be the player that showed so much promise that first game three years ago.

Orlando waited for him to return. Fultz waited for his return.

And so Tuesday’s game against the Wizards was a milestone for him. It was not only his return to his hometown to play for the first time since his first game. It was the first time he had played 20 games in a season.

The patience for Fultz to return from this injury and the patience from the Magic to help him recover are both paying off. It is safe to say the Magic are now weeping the rewards of the Fultz trade.

"“Thank you to the Orlando organization for giving me the opportunity and believing me,” Fultz told FOX Sports Florida’s Dante Marchitelli after the game. “There is a lot of hard work put into this. And it is paying off.”"

It paid off most immediately Tuesday.

Against the Wizards, Fultz scored a career-high 20 points on 9-for-17 shooting from the field with six assists and two steals.

From the outset of the game, the Magic called on Fultz and he delivered. He took veteran and fellow Washington alumnus Isaiah Thomas off the dribble, backed him up and hit a fade-way jumper.

Fultz’s mid-range game was at its best against the Wizards. He nailed an array of fade-away and step-back jumpers and is now shooting 47.6 percent (20 for 42) from mid-range on the season.

Fultz’s shooting has been dissected plenty. His outside shot is still inconsistent. But he is finding his rhythm in the mid-range where he uses his dribble to set himself. He can dribble himself into a rhythm. And this has made him a dangerous offensive weapon again.

He is starting to play with some of the rhythm and confidence he played with at Washington.

Fultz is producing in a major way. He is averaging 12.1 points per game on 49.8-percent shooting overall. Since Nikola Vucevic‘s injury, Fultz is averaging 15.5 points per game on 52.6-percent shooting.

The minutes restriction the team put on Fultz to start the season has been lifted out of necessity. Orlando is simply a better team with Fultz on the floor — the team is +3.8 points per 100 possessions with Fultz on the floor, a mark that trails only Nikola Vucevic on the team, and -6.8 points per 100 possessions with Fultz off the floor, the worst mark on the team.

Fultz’s arrival came when he jammed an important basket against the Wizards a few weeks ago. He keeps displaying flashes of that stellar talent.

But it is easy to forget he has now played in only 58 total regular-season games in three years. He has not even reached a full season in the league. There is still plenty of area for his game to grow.

In addition to his development as a shooter, he still needs to learn to take over a game.

After hitting the Magic’s first four points to start the third quarter on back-to-back possessions, Fultz was in position to initiate the offense on the wing and continue his hot streak. But he hesitated and got called for a travel. It was one of four turnovers for Fultz in the game.

The awkwardness behind the 3-point line is still a bit of a hindrance in his overall game. His bread and butter skills are his ability to penetrate into the lane, make tough baskets and find open teammates with precision passing.

Against the Wizards in the first quarter, Fultz dribbled from mid-court into lane and absorb the contact of Washington’s Bradley Beal, who grabbed at the ball. But Fultz did a 180-degree spin and finished with an up and under layup.

https://twitter.com/FOXSportsFL/status/1202021173405483009

Fultz made that play look like a casual stroll in the park.

That is the kind of poise and control that he plays the game of basketball with. He does not get rattled and generally does not force anything offensively.

Fultz has also displayed flashes of brilliance and aggressiveness on the defensive end. To end the first half, Fultz knocked a rebound away from a Wizard and dribbled the length of the court to make an impossible layup attempt look effortless.

Fultz is starting the show the world the skills and qualities that made him the No. 1 pick of the 2017 NBA draft.

It has been a long road for Fultz to get back. More than anything, Fultz has said he wants to go out and play. Basketball was taken away from him for so long, he longed just to be out on the floor. Never mind, making the impact he has made.

"“Every game, I get out there, I feel comfortable, ” Fultz said after the Magic victory against the Golden State Warriors (h/t Roy Parry of the Orlando Sentinel). “I’m getting more and more confident every time I step out there [on the floor]. Those are just the plays I’ve got to step up and make with guys being out, just being aggressive and being a play-maker. If I see a seam [to] just go and score or get my teammates open, I’m going to go do that.”"

The court is his home as much as anything. It is something that he was missing and someplace he desperately wanted to be.

Now with 20 games under his belt this year, it is now the most games that Fultz has played in an NBA season. Now with 20 games under his belt, Fultz is back home.

Back in his actual hometown, he showed he has a lot more left in the tank. And a lot more memories to make.