Shake Milton Felt Relieved to be Back on the Floor With Sixers vs. Pistons
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The last time Shake Milton took the floor for the Sixers was back on October 7 in a preseason matchup against the Toronto Raptors. He checked in for 25 minutes and collected five points, four assists, and two rebounds.
At the time, Milton was battling it out with Tyrese Maxey for the starting point guard position as Ben Simmons remained away from the team. Unfortunately, Milton lost by default as he sprained his ankle during practice.
After receiving his official diagnosis, Milton missed the Sixers' next preseason matchup against the Brooklyn Nets. A few nights later, he was also ruled out of the preseason finale against the Detroit Pistons.
Although Sixers head coach Doc Rivers was hopeful the entire team would be healthy during the few practices leading up to the regular season, Milton was one of the few players who didn't get the green light to participate in full.
And his injury concerns lingered into the regular season. The 76ers opened up their 2021-2022 schedule with a matchup against the New Orleans Pelicans. Milton, who was ruled out early, was nowhere near ready to play, according to Rivers.
A couple of nights later, the Sixers faced the Brooklyn Nets. Once again, Milton watched from the bench in street clothes. When the Sixers hit the road for a two-game trip to face the Oklahoma City Thunder and the New York Knicks, Milton was trending in the right direction but wasn't quite ready to play just yet.
Finally, on Thursday, that all changed. The Sixers upgraded the veteran guard to questionable leading up to the matchup against the Detroit Pistons. He was a full participant in shootaround on Thursday morning and went through pregame warmups without any setbacks.
Therefore, Milton was activated and ready to come off the Sixers' bench for the first time this year. When he checked in with roughly two minutes left to go in the first quarter, Milton brought a nice spark off the Sixers' bench.
"It definitely felt good," Milton said on Thursday. "After a while sitting out, it's kind of hard. Sitting there, watching the team. Of course, you're cheering them on, but you also want to be out there helping them win. So, it felt good to be out there tonight."
After missing several weeks worth of practice, two preseason games, and four regular-season matchups, Milton was admittedly rusty at first. However, once he got settled in, the young veteran quickly started feeling more comfortable.
"[I felt] a little bit [of rust]," Milton continued. "I could tell just a couple of defensive mistakes that I had. Especially with that being an area that I worked so hard on this whole offseason. I think I haven't really been playing, so the more I get in, the more minutes I get, I'll get acclimated."
All in all, Milton finished his season debut with 13 points in 16 minutes. He drained five of his ten shots from the field and went 2-3 from deep. He also collected five assists and took care of the ball as he turned it over just one time. It was a solid night for the young guard, and he expects only to get better as he continues to shake the rust off.
Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.