At the beginning of the 2019 NBA offseason, it was fairly clear that former Washington basketball alum Markelle Fultz and the Philadelphia 76ers were headed for a particularly costly and messy separation. After the acquisitions of Jimmy Butler and Tobias Harris throughout the season and Fultz’s subsequent refusal to play, we were left to see which team wanted to take a chance on a player for which Sixers GM Elton Brand traded up to draft at No. 1 overall.
Fultz’s trade to Orlando signaled the end of two seasons of futility, where he played a total of 36 games in two full years.