The Philadelphia 76ers have gradually shifted the burden of responsibility from Joel Embiid to Tyrese Maxey as the franchise player. It's a development brought on by Embiid's unfortunate run of injuries in recent seasons, with Maxey having to prove he can guide the team to a postseason-caliber level of success.
After a tough 2024-25 campaign, Maxey is making the superstar leap and proving that he can be a true franchise player—one who Paul George believes is showing shades of Allen Iverson.
The dream scenario is for Embiid, George, and Maxey to lead the 76ers as a healthy trio with no ego about who the face of the franchise truly is. With Embiid missing eight of Philadelphia's first 14 games and George playing in just one, however, Maxey has been tasked with stepping up in a superstar role.
According to Tony Jones of The Athletic, George praised Maxey for not only making the superstar leap, but carrying a monumental burden in terms of minutes played and clutch contributions.
“He’s special,” George told The Athletic. “I thought he had a phenomenal year last year, but it got lost in the season that we had as a team. Because of that, people didn’t really talk about him heading into this season. But, when you watch him just take over games and get us timely buckets, it’s special to see. We’re asking him to do so much. We’re asking him to play a ton of minutes and he’s delivering."
George continued, making a comparison that 76ers fans will either love or be reluctant to embrace to all-time franchise great Allen Iverson.
“He’s the heart and soul of this team. This is similar to what Allen Iverson once did for the city. He’s our battery, and we’re witnessing one of them ones.”
Few players have ever put a team on their back in the way that Iverson managed to with the 76ers, but Maxey is earning high praise for his effort to do the same.
Paul George compares Tyrese Maxey's burden with 76ers to Allen Iverson
Maxey is currently playing an obscene 40.3 minutes per game. He's the only player in the NBA averaging at least 40.0 minutes per contest. In fact, he's one of just two players averaging more than 36.9 minutes—with teammate VJ Edgecombe being the other at 37.3.
With an absolutely unrivaled level of pressure on him to perform, Maxey could've easily crumbled. Instead, he's checking several Iverson boxes.
Maxey is currently averaging 31.9 points, 7.8 assists, 4.7 rebounds, 1.5 steals, 0.8 blocks, and 3.9 three-point field goals made per game. He's doing so while shooting the lights out, burying shots at a clip of .461/.423/.881.
Moreover, Maxey is on pace to set the highest single-season scoring average by a guard in franchise history—eclipsing the 31.4 that Iverson managed in 2001-02.
Clearly, comparing anyone to Iverson is a bold move, no matter how talented or productive they may be. In addition to being the face of the franchise for a decade, Iverson led Philadelphia to its most recent and perhaps least likely NBA Finals appearance in 2001.
Every legend has to start somewhere, however, and Maxey has not only carried an impossible burden on his shoulders, but led Philadelphia to an improbable 8-6 start to the season.
It's not only that Maxey has produced otherworldly statistics with remarkable efficiency, but that he's been nothing short of irreplaceable. The 76ers are being outscored by 10.9 points per 100 possessions when he's off the court and aren't yet showing signs of improvement in that regard.
Perhaps it doesn't sit right to hear another 76ers guard mentioned alongside Iverson, but Maxey is operating at a level that rivals The Answer and takes the baton from The Process.