The Philadelphia 76ers are looking for their next ballhandler given Ben Simmons continues his holdout to force a trade.
The Sixers have turned to Tyrese Maxey to initiate their offense with the first unit in training camp, but they have another option, fourth-year guard Shake Milton.
Milton was Philadelphia’s starting point guard for parts of the 2019-20 season when Simmons was hurt. He was their point guard in the 2020 playoffs as well. A few days into training camp for the 2021-22 season he has caught the attention of coach Doc Rivers.
“Shake had a great day today (Wednesday) leading the second team,” said Rivers. “You can tell he’s put a lot of work in at that position where last year, honestly, he came into the year and had no idea he’d be a point guard. So, he’s been fantastic for us. The first group today kind of showed up. It’s good to see them. They played great.”
Milton averaged 13.0 points off the bench in the 2020-21 season, and he looks to handle more responsibilities with Simmons essentially out the door. He is also learning how to be a leader for the second unit and handle everything. The good thing for him is he’s on a team with respected veterans.
“Definitely a work in progress,” said Milton. “It’s not like it’s a finished thing. I’m constantly learning every day. I try to take a little bit from everybody that I see. How Joel (Embiid) commands the team, how Tobias (Harris) uses his voice as a leader, and try to incorporate it into my own thing. It’s been fun.”
For the Sixers to have the success they plan on moving forward, they will need somebody like Milton to step up and provide more production. The first few days of training camp have given him a bit of a boost.
This post originally appeared on Sixers Wire! Follow us on Facebook!
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