‘It’s his team’: Tyrese Maxey is turning heads as the Sixers’ lone star so far this season

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Tyrese Maxey has been trying to bring ‘positive energy’ during a tough start. (AP Photo/Chris Szagola)

DETROIT — Some days it’s with boundless energy and a great smile, others it’s by taking teammates to task following a bad loss.

On a snowy Saturday morning in Detroit, though, Tyrese Maxey was singing old-school Motown tunes to gin up energy for the Philadelphia 76ers’ shootaround. The music was blasting and Maxey, who wasn’t born until 2000, some 30 years after Motown’s heyday, was going as if the hits were released yesterday.

“My grandmothers, man,” he said.

There’s a maturity about Maxey that belies the energy, that accepts the responsibility of the 76ers’ plight even though no one in their right mind would dare say he’s not holding up his end of the bargain.

That night, Paul George made his return following a three-game absence; his debut in Philadelphia has been riddled with injuries to sap the excitement the franchise began the season with. Joel Embiid missed Saturday’s game, like he has so many others, with the knee ailments that have dogged his career and will likely continue to do so as he goes deeper into his 30s.

That leaves Maxey as the lone star trying to keep the 76ers afloat, as only the Washington Wizards, New Orleans Pelicans and Utah Jazz have worse records to date.

Maxey was supposed to be part of a top-heavy, well-constructed unit, a sonic-like change of direction from the deliberate George and plodding Embiid. Now, he’s sliding to the top of the scouting report every night.

“I wouldn’t say I was gonna be sliding into anything,” Maxey told Yahoo Sports. “I had a special season last year, so I knew after Joel, I was right there at the top.” But Maxey acknowledges having to play different ways when Embiid and George are not in the lineup, while also adjusting to new guys on the roster. “So we have to figure out how we want to play, who goes well with who. That takes time.”

But it’s getting late very early for the 76ers. In their next eight games, four are against powerful teams: The surprising Orlando Magic (twice), the conference-leading Cleveland Cavaliers and the…

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Author : Yahoo Sports

Publish date : 2024-12-02 22:14:00

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