One Sixers stud from first few weeks: Tyrese Maxey
Tyrese Maxey is unequivocally a stud. We have progressed past the point of “he’s better leading the second unit,” or “we’re not sure he’s efficient enough to lead the first five on a good team.” Maxey has been supremely efficient, and now with Joel Embiid out, Maxey is stepping up in ways no one could have imagined, even a month ago.
From day one of his career, Maxey’s rate of improvement has been truly absurd. He gets better seemingly with every game, or at least with every week. His work ethic is well documented, and there’s no one who (from the outside looking in) draws more heat from the coaching staff. Maxey takes it on the chin, works his tail off every day, and allows that hard work to manifest on the court.
Maxey is averaging 22.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 5.4 assists and less than one turnover per game over his last five appearances. The Sixers have played Maxey an absurd 41.4 minutes per game over that stretch, and yet his efficiency (.518/.435/.933) and ball security have not suffered in the slightest. He is one of the most gifted small finishers in the NBA at 6-foot-2, and his complete aversion to turning the ball over is rare for such a young ball-handler saddled with such a massive role.
Point blank and simple, Maxey is a rising star. He’s too good to keep out of the starting five, no matter what happens with Simmons. He will have cool spells to balance out the red-hot nights, but with consecutive 30-point games under his belt and a large share of the Sixers’ offense at his control, we can safely expect big things from Maxey. At this point, it’s only a matter of managing his minutes.