Tyrese Maxey truly is a "rising star" for Philadelphia

Very few first- or second-year players are thriving more than Tyrese Maxey is this season. The second-year Kentucky guard is one of the three most important players for the Philadelphia 76ers — a team competing for the Eastern Conference’s one-seed.

At 16.9 points, 3.6 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game, Maxey’s raw averages were enough to earn him a spot in this season’s Rising Stars event. But he’s endeared himself to Philly fans and coach Doc Rivers with his energy and plays in between the simple box score statistics.

As he was at Kentucky, Maxey is a joy to watch; a nonstop motor on both ends of the court, as fast as John Wall or De’Aaron Fox in transition and also capable of firing off and splashing his pretty pull-up jumper. So far in his sophomore year, the promise is great and the flaws are very little.

Tyrese Maxey appreciation tweet 🪣

(🎥 @swishcultures_ ) pic.twitter.com/2z5J53OAIK

— NBA Central (@TheNBACentral) February 1, 2022

Maxey didn’t come into this season with a guaranteed role or very much experience as a rotation piece. He played sparingly in the regular season his rookie year and was thrust into a larger role in the playoffs due to injuries to other guards. Still, coming into this fall, he was an intriguing rotation piece, not someone who would lead the Sixers in minutes. Which he has.

Not only does Maxey Philadelphia in minutes per game at 35.7, but that number also ranks eighth in the entire NBA. Further to the point of Rivers’ trust in the youngster, Maxey also takes care of the basketball as Philly’s full-time point guard. Before Ben Simmons sidelined himself, the 76ers had no intention of letting Maxey run the show. Nevertheless, he took over the position extraordinarily for a 21-year-old.

Maxey plays a ton of minutes and never started full-time at point guard in college or the NBA until this point in his career. Yet he leads the Eastern Conference two-seed in assists per game and trails only Chris Paul in assist-to-turnover ratio among guys who play 30+ minutes a night.

The few holes poked in Maxey’s game coming out of college are turning into strengths too. Known as a knockdown shooter out of high school, he struggled to hit threes consistently at Kentucky and as a rookie for the Sixers. However, he’s converting 40.4% in 2021-22. Partially due to the fact that he’s conservative about what deep shots he takes. (Though Joel Embiid wishes he’d take more).

Maxey is capable of knocking down 3s off the dribble and in pull-up or step-back situations. But for most players that jack up that kind of junk regularly, they aren’t efficient. Maxey shoots well because he avoids bad shot selection.

For someone who plays 35+ minutes nightly, Maxey actually has a pretty low usage rate. Good! Rather than take a million poor shots like some of the younger stars on terrible teams, he’s learning how to take the right shots in order to be effective for a winning team.

As a team, Philly is hot as anyone in the NBA. Since Christmas, the Sixers are 15-3 as of Wednesday morning, the best mark in the league. With 10 of those wins by double-digits and five by 18 or more. Philadelphia is also first in net-rating and top-five in both offense and defense.

The Eastern Conference is much deeper than in recent years, but less crowded at the top. Brooklyn and Milwaukee struggled with consistency and injuries so far and Chicago has some starters sidelined with a small lead for the one-seed. With how well Joel Embiid is playing and the surrounding contributions from guys like Maxey, the Sixers are in position to usurp the one-seed.

Plus, Ben Simmons is yet to be dealt with. The trade deadline is quickly approaching. If I’m Sixers GM Daryl Morey, I’m doing what I can to move Simmons for pieces to help win now. The East is strong but wide open. Embiid is an MVP favorite and Maxey has taken a precocious leap in year two. Go add another player or two and make a real run at the East.

Check out some Maxey clips on your way out.