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Sacramento Kings Reach Deal With Former No. 1 Pick Markelle Fultz
Markelle Fultz has reached a deal with the Sacramento Kings to help shore up their backcourt after the team traded De'Aaron Fox to the San Antonio Spurs on Feb. 2.
ESPN's Shams Charania reported that Fultz was signing with the Kings. Fultz spent the past five seasons with the Orlando Magic, where he played in 43 games during an injury-riddled season.
Over his five seasons in Orlando, he averaged 11.6 points and 4.8 assists per game, mostly starting for the team when he was available. He averaged 14 points and 5.7 assists, both career highs, in the 2022-23 season where he made 60 appearances.
The Philadelphia 76ers drafted Fultz with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2017 NBA draft. Philadelphia traded him to Orlando during his second NBA season after shoulder injuries got in the way of his short stay with the 76ers.
Fultz, 26, joins Sacramento as their newest point guard after the Fox trade, which netted scorer Zach LaVine and draft compensation. The Kings (27-26) hope Fultz will help their postseason push, as the team currently sits in the No. 9 seed in the Western Conference just before the NBA's All-Star break.
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Blake Silverman is a contributor to the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. Before joining SI in November 2024, he covered the WNBA, NBA, G League and college basketball for numerous sites, including Winsidr, SB Nation's Detroit Bad Boys and A10Talk. He graduated from Michigan State University before receiving a master's in sports journalism from St. Bonaventure University. Outside of work, he's probably binging the latest Netflix documentary, at a yoga studio or enjoying everything Detroit sports. A lifelong Michigander, he lives in suburban Detroit with his wife, young son and their personal petting zoo of two cats and a dog.