Fultz not slowing down
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One of the 2014-15 high school basketball season's biggest stories has been the
emergence of junior shooting guard Markelle Fultz. In just one year
Fultz went from toiling on the junior varsity level to being named MVP of
perhaps the toughest league in high school basketball and he doesn't show any
signs of stopping.
A 6-foot-4 junior at Hyattsville (Md.) DeMatha, Fultz was an unknown while
playing junior varsity ball for most of his sophomore season. This season, he
exploded onto the scene as a four-star prospect who racked up scholarship offers
and was named player of the year in the ultra competitive Washington Catholic
Athletic Conference.
"It's just a blessing," Fultz said. "It's just showing me that if I keep working
I can do pretty much anything I want in life. It makes me want to keep working
more and more. I'm just taking it day by day because I'm not guaranteed anything
in the future."
Fultz is a smooth athlete with an explosive first step who says that it was a
matter of working hard in the gym and being pushed by his teammates to reach his
full potential.
"I think it was me putting in work all the time and doing game type stuff when I
was working out," said Fultz. "In practice I'm always working and pushing my
team and my teammates are pushing me too. I owe a lot to them and am not taking
anything for granted. I can control going out and playing hard every game and
God has me with everything else."
Fultz is high scoring two guard who can bury jumpers or get to the rim. He is at
his best in an up and down game and wants to expand on his defensive potential.
"I think my strength is beating people off the dribble and in transition I can
pass or I have athleticism to go get a bucket almost every time," Fultz said.
"The thing I want to work on his my defense. I want to be able to check one
through four and even a five. Whoever they put in front of me I want to be able
to stop."
This week, Fultz added MVP of the Maryland Private Schools Tournament after
leading DeMatha to a title. Not surprisingly, the scholarship offers have been
rolling in like crazy. This season, Arizona, Cincinnati,
Xavier have all offered scholarships.
Some prospects might struggle with that level of attention, but Fultz hasn't
found it that tough to keep up with the coaches that are recruiting him.
"I wouldn't say that it's that tough," said Fultz. "Sometimes it might be
because I have class when the coaches call. I do my best to call them back and
the coaches do a good job with me. It keeps me humble that coaches like me and
it's not hard, it's motivating."
This weekend, Fultz will wrap up his junior season as DeMatha competes in the
Alhambra Catholic Invitational. This spring and summer he will hit the Under
Armour Association circuit with the DC Blue Devils. Somewhere along the line
he'll cut down his list but he doesn't have any firm plans.
"I'm not sure right now," said Fultz. "I'm trying to make sure we win these last
games of our season and send our seniors home happy. I really don't know, but
I'll probably look at it after the season."
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