Tobias Harris, Doc Rivers Acknowledge Shake Milton's Recent Surge
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In the absence of the starting backcourt, Philadelphia 76ers guard Shake Milton has made the most with his increase in playing time.
Initially out of the Sixers’ rotation at the start of the year, Milton patiently waited for his opportunity to take the floor and garner notable playing time.
In the first eight games of the season, Milton appeared in just four matchups. During that time, he averaged under eight minutes on the floor. For the next six games, Milton’s minutes increased to 16 per game off the bench in the absence of James Harden.
Then when Tyrese Maxey went out, Milton started appearing on the court for an average of 37 minutes while sharing the court with De’Anthony Melton in the starting five.
This week has been Milton’s best yet. While he was off to a bit of a slow start by scoring just 16 points in the Tuesday night upset over the Brooklyn Nets, Milton followed up that performance with a 22-point, nine-assist outing against the Charlotte Hornets. The nine assists tied Milton’s career-high for the second time in his career.
Two nights later, against the Orlando Magic, he exceeded that number while scoring more.
“He’s been great,” said Milton’s veteran teammate, Tobias Harris. “He’s out there, he’s finding his flow, running the team. He’s always been a very good scorer on the floor, but over these last however many games, he’s just really showing his whole arsenal on the offensive end and really how he can get to his spots and raise up and shoot and create plays.”
On Friday night in Orlando, Milton checked in for a season-high of 41 minutes. The young veteran drained 54 percent of his shots on offense and hit on four of his seven three-point attempts. He finished the game with 24 points and produced his first double-double with ten assists to follow.
“He was great,” Doc Rivers stated following the first outing against Orlando on Friday. “Good decision-making. Best I’ve seen him pass, ever. He’s always been a scorer, but right now, Shake’s doing more. He made two defensive plays, got his hands on the ball, and got a steal, a tie-up, rebounding the ball and making the right decisions. It’s really great to see.”
Milton’s shown flashes like this before. Back in 2019-2020, the young guard filled in for an injured Ben Simmons and thrived with an increase in playing time. By the time Simmons returned to the Sixers’ lineup, Milton stuck around the starting five.
While it’s highly unlikely Milton sees a similar result this season when Harden and Maxey return to the mix, Milton is proving he belongs in the key rotation when the lineups begin to normalize for the Sixers later on down the line.
“He’s been phenomenal for us,” Harris continued. “We talked about after the Brooklyn game. It’s an opportunity for a lot of guys to be in different positions that they haven’t been in to take advantage of it, and he’s one of them. He’s doing an amazing job at that.”
The Sixers are back on the floor in Orlando on Sunday night. Once again, Milton is likely to start as the team remains without Harden and Maxey.
Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for All76ers, a Sports Illustrated channel. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.
