Shake Milton Puts in Extra Work Following Sixers' Victory Over Wizards

Philadelphia 76ers guard Shake Milton hasn't looked like himself lately. After having a breakout season during his Sophomore effort last year, expectations were sky-high for the former SMU standout.

But lately, the third-year guard hasn't lived up to the hype. Overall, Milton's had a solid third season in the NBA. Coming off the bench as a key piece in the Sixers' rotation, Milton put up career-high numbers with 13 points per game, three assists per game, and 2.3 rebounds per game in 2020-2021.

Considering he's achieved those numbers in 63 of Philly's 72-game season, it seemed the young guard was bound to be a key member of Philly's playoff rotation. Throughout the first-round series against the Washington Wizards, his playing time decreased as his struggles entered the spotlight.

In Game 1, Milton logged nine minutes. He scored five points, hitting one of his three field-goal attempts and draining two free throws. In 23 minutes over the following two games, the young guard collected just four points, shooting 11-percent from the field and turning the ball over six times.

Milton saw his playing time go down to just six minutes per game for the final two games of the series. In limited minutes, he shot 28-percent from the field and collected eight points over two games. Knowing he needs to improve before the second-round series against the Atlanta Hawks, Milton opted to hit the court again following Wednesday night's Game 5 victory over the Wizards to work on himself.

Postgame workouts aren't foreign to Sixers players this year. From the start of the season, players such as Ben Simmons, Dwight Howard, Isaiah Joe, Paul Reed, Matisse Thybulle, and Joel Embiid have all had moments throughout the year where they felt they needed to work out after the game.

Milton, who has struggled to find his shot in the postseason this year, was the latest player to get some extra work in on Wednesday. Although his struggles lately have contributed to his lack of playing time, Sixers head coach Doc Rivers assured everybody that Milton's place in the rotation still exists.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_ & Instagram: @JGrassoNBA.