In the first two games of the preseason, the new mechanics were apparent and appeared to be yielding improvements, despite a slight hitch still present at the top of the shot. Then he went to China for an exhibition series put on by the NBA, and the consistency of his mechanics began to wane. When he got back for the regular season, the trend shifted in the other direction. He hit one pull-up against the Celtics in the season opener, then shot 1-for-6 in the first half of the home opener against the Chicago Bulls. Just about everyone from Fultz’s camp was in attendance, including his mother Ebony and trainer Hanlen.
At halftime, multiple witnesses observed Ebony yelling at Hanlen. According to sources with knowledge of the argument, she was angry that results were not showing for Markelle and Hanlen walked away. Hanlen did not work with Fultz again after that fight and officially parted ways.
When reached for comment, Hanlen told The Athletic, “Legally I am not allowed to address the situation or talk about anything regarding my time with Markelle.”
By October 29, Fultz had reverted back to the form similar to the one he displayed at 2017 training camp, with a set point down in front of his face. He hit one wide-open three with this form in a 1-for-5 shooting night, then missed a pair of 3-pointers wide off the rim early in the in the first few possessions of the game the next night in Toronto. He has not attempted another three in nine games since.
After a rough shooting night against the Brooklyn Nets on November 4, Hanlen responded to a tweet by saying that Fultz is not fully healthy, which he later deleted. This prompted questions to Brown and Fultz about whether this was true.
Fultz echoed the exact same “nobody’s ever 100 percent healthy” mantra, saying bumps and bruises are just life in the NBA and he’s working every day to get better. But over the past few weeks, Fultz has displayed some odd tendencies during dead-ball moments in the game. First, it was a whole-body spasm after tying his shoes. Then he double-pumped a free throw, something he explained away as the ball slipping out of his hands.
Then there was a shuffling of the ball on the way up on a free throw against Utah Friday night, which was, according to a source familiar with the matter, an attempt to block out the yips. A source said that concern about his injury causes him to double clutch, or hesitate, fearful the ball may slip. At this point, the source said, it is as much a mental hurdle as it is a physical one.