FanPost

Ben Uzoh a good sign for Markelle Fultz

Aaron Gordon seems genuinely hype about Fultz, calling him a monster and he's one of the few insiders seeing Fultz shoot and practice basketball right now.

"(Fultz) is a sleeper," Gordon said during a recent interview with SiriusXM NBA Radio. "If he wakes up and if he’s awake and woken up, he’s a monster. A monster. People are sleeping on him. That’s what I mean by, ‘He’s a sleeper.’ People are sleeping on him. He’s going to be huge for our team."

Not sure how many Magic fans know but Ben Uzoh is really the only other NBA player with a similar case of TOS to Markelle Fultz. The recent news of him continuing to play solid pro basketball is a very good sign for Markelle. Ben Uzoh is playing proof Markelle Fultz can regain his form

Uzoh is one of three NBA players that have had a documented case of thoracic outlet syndrome. The others are Landry Fields and, of course, Markelle Fultz. Ben Uzoh’s play is hope that Markelle Fultz can make a full recovery and still have a long career ahead of him.

The other player, Landry Fields had a different TOS issue including nerve damage. His case does also show how a nerve injury in the arm can completely destroy a basketball players shooting ability.

Landry Fields was drafted by the Knicks in the second round of the 2010 draft. He surprised during his rookie year, shooting nearly 40% from deep and becoming a good defender at the wing. Fields was named to the All-Rookie 1st Team, and it appeared that he had a bright career ahead of him. ... Before his first season in Toronto, Fields suffered an injury to a nerve in his right arm. His form wasn’t the same. He couldn’t shoot threes. Fields was signed to be a three-point specialist, but he made just two threes during his first year in Toronto. Things would only get worse from there for Fields. In 2013-14, he played just 30 games due to having multiple surgeries in an attempt to fix his nerve issues. He didn’t make a three the entire season, just four years after shooting 39% from deep.

Uzoh on the other hand had a case that really tracks like Fultz's experience:

His story really does track Fultz’s story. He brushed aside the pain and kept playing, trying to make his way until it became too much. Like Fultz, Uzoh expressed frustration with the injury and lost confidence in himself. Similar to Fultz, when Uzoh finally reported the discomfort to team trainers with the Canton Charge in the G-League (coached at that time by current Orlando Magic assistant coach Steve Hetzl), they could not find anything wrong. That caused Uzoh to shut down mentally.

Fields was a rotation player and Uzoh was only a marginal NBA player so Markelle Fultz, a blue-chip number 1 overall is at a different level talent wise however the TOS impact is very physical and very real at any level of skill.

But Uzoh showed a comeback is possible. He is still a dynamic and solid guard who has played a key role for Nigeria. And if they are going to make the Olympics from their World Cup play, Uzoh will have a role to play. Of course, neither Uzoh nor Fields have the same expectations level or weight for their team that Fultz was expected to have. Neither of those players was a top pick, let alone the top overall pick, with major roles to play on a playoff team.

UPDATE: Fultz ready for Magic training camp.

This FanPost was made by a member of the Orlando Pinstriped Post community, and is to be treated as the opinions and views of its author, not that of the blogger or blog community as a whole.