Markelle Fultz's agent says he ‘literally’ can’t shoot right now, so why do the 76ers keep playing him?

Philadelphia should shut Fultz down until he can actually basketball again.

76ers guard Markelle Fultz “literally cannot raise his arms up” right now, Fultz’s agent, Raymond Brothers, told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski on Tuesday. The news confirms speculation that ran rampant across the league after watching Fultz struggle with his free throw form and avoid jump shots altogether.

"Markelle had a shoulder injury and fluid drained out of the back of his shoulder,” Brothers told ESPN. "He literally cannot raise up his arms to shoot the basketball. He decided to try and fight through the pain to help the team. He has a great attitude. We are committed to finding a solution to get Markelle back to 100 percent.”

Brothers said Fultz, the No. 1 pick in last year’s NBA draft, had his shoulder drained before the season started, and the minor operation caused him to miss the end of the preseason schedule. There has been no decision made yet on whether Fultz will continue to play through the injury or sit out until he can return to his proper form.

Why isn’t this an easy decision to shut him down?

Assuming Fultz’s agent is accurate — it is his job to say what’s best for his client, after all — this decision is a baffling one. Philadelphia has shut down Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons over the past few years due to injuries. If Fultz isn’t 100 percent, why wouldn’t they do the same?

(It’s worth noting Philadelphia’s medical staff developed a poor reputation over the past few years, though the 76ers hired a new doctor to head their department before this season.)

Fultz went with the first overall pick in large part due to his sweet stroke behind the line. At Washington, Fultz featured a deadly pull-up jumper, and his ability to play off the ball was lauded as a huge plus for this Philadelphia team. However, Fultz hasn’t attempted a three-pointer — or even a long two-pointer — since the opening preseason game. Per Brothers’ timeline, that was probably before his shoulder was drained.

Without the ability to shoot a jump shot, Fultz isn’t the player he can be. Philadelphia has already replaced him in the starting lineup with Jerryd Bayless. Between Bayless, T.J. McConnell, and nominal point guard Ben Simmons, they can easily survive an absence from Fultz. Philadelphia is sick of losing, but Fultz isn’t helping them win right now. He has scored 24 points on 9-of-27 shooting while playing less than 20 minutes per game.

Still, this is good news for Philadelphia fans.

If Fultz wasn’t injured, then his jump shot problems were confidence related, or were the result of some mind games he was playing. The injury should come as a relief: This isn’t Fultz at 100 percent, and thank God it isn’t, since he has been a shell of the player he was lauded as before the season started.

Continue playing Fultz minuscule minutes off the bench while he’s unable to use one of his best offensive weapons, and maybe it could become a confidence issue. Nobody wants to see yet another 76ers prospect miss time, but in this instance, it seems clear that it’s the right move to make until Fultz is healthy again.