PHOENIX – Justifiable or not, Dario Saric lost his cornerstone label once the 76ers drafted Markelle Fultz with the first pick in June’s NBA draft.
The belief was that Fultz, Joel Embiid, and Ben Simmons would become the team’s trio of young stars. Saric, even after being last season’s rookie of the year runner-up, was destined to become a role player. Or so we thought.
Fultz has missed 32 games this season due to right-shoulder soreness and the team’s desire to not play him until his shooting mechanics return.
Meanwhile, Saric was the Sixers’ most reliable player in the final three games of their road trip, which concluded Sunday with a 123-110 win over the Phoenix Suns.