PHILADELPHIA — Previously, as the Philadelphia 76ers tried to figure out how to win without Joel Embiid, Nick Nurse said that the team is aiming to “pick off” wins. The value in doing so goes beyond the obvious need to keep pushing for a playoff bid. Tyrese Maxey, promoted to the first option in the ultimate next-man-up scenario, wants to see the Embiid-less version of the team become a confident unit that knows how it can win games.
In their last game, the Sixers submitted one of their best Embiid-less games of the season. They built a big lead over the Miami Heat and held on long enough to win. Maxey recorded 30 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds in a masterful, dominant performance. Philly has depended heavily on the young All-Star but cannot use requests for masterclasses as its only path to victory.
Maxey said that it's “extremely important” for the Embiid-less 76ers to find an identity.
Tyrese Maxey on the importance of finding an identity for games with Joel Embiid:
“Going into the NBA season, you don't plan to not have somebody, especially a MVP like Jo. Once you get into that situation, you have to kind of reconstruct things…It’s been good for us, though.” pic.twitter.com/fkwW99BAMV
— Sam DiGiovanni (@BySamDiGiovanni) March 19, 2024
“Going into the NBA season, you don't plan to not have somebody, especially an MVP like Jo,” Maxey said. “Once you get into that situation, you have to kind of reconstruct things and reconstruct minutes, rotations — and all that takes time, because I was used to playing a little bit in the first and then the whole second. So now it's reversed, now I play the whole first. Guys just have to be adaptable.”
Embiid's absence forced everyone on the 76ers to readjust their games. Easy opportunities on offense are gone. Defensive mistakes are more exposed. Maxey said that staying competitive and working to find what works best for this group is “good for us” and gave shoutouts to KJ Martin, Mo Bamba, Paul Reed and Nico Batum for their efforts against the Heat.
“I went through some things and I think when he first went out it was hard for me to adjust to the traps and the double teams and stuff like that. I wasn't used to that,” Maxey said. “And then I realize now when I can attack, when I should attack, when I can get to the paint and pass, how to kind of manipulate the defense and when they come trap and I can swing it and get guys open shots. That's what I think I've gotten better at.”
Aggression has always been a goal for Maxey this season, with Nurse using the word almost every time he responded to a question about what he did or needs to do. But now, the All-Star guard said, that aggression is the primary engine in the 76ers' offense.
On top of the extra responsibility of making players for others, Maxey has limited avenues toward getting easier shots for himself. He excels at the first level of scoring (at the basket) and the third (beyond the arc) and has been thrown to the fire as he tries to grow the in-between level. While the focus on winning games now is first on his mind, it's also a work in progress that will pay off massively in the long run for his development.
Against the Heat, Maxey shot 5-6 on non-paint two-pointers. He missed a few floaters and layups from outside the restricted arc but looked poised when hunting his own shot against a solid defensive team. Rather than shoot down the lane, he stayed patient and kept his dribble going, waiting for a chance to create an open look.
Maxey said that he wanted to just shoot threes and get to the rim as he came into his own as a high-school standout. His dad, he recalled, told him that he needed to develop a pull-up game. In a basketball world where kids everywhere watched in awe as icons like Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant made the mid-range the place to be, Maxey said he was drawn to the area of the floor where two-pointers were easiest and the shot that generated an extra point.
Long before he knew Daryl Morey, Maxey subscribed to the shot diet that Morey's Houston Rockets would inspire the rest of the NBA to switch to. But now as a lead option, Maxey faces too much defensive attention to only shoot the most analytically pure field goals. This will be especially true come playoff time. He has come to learn how a middie or a floater is often the best shot he'll get as opposed to challenging a center at the rim. His dad's advice proved to be spot-on.
“He was right,” Maxey said bluntly, implying a sense of ambivalent appreciation, “and I told him, I think, right after or right before the All-Star break. I said, ‘You were right, man. I have to implement a pull-up game.’”
At the rim, Maxey can get a shot to go by jumping off the wrong foot or shooting at an atypical angle. For smaller players like him, it takes creativity to score in the territory occupied by giants. Maxey leads the NBA with 19 field goals that drew a goaltending call. “Wow, there's a stat for everything nowadays,” he said when informed of the stat, explaining how “throwing off that rhythm and timing from the defense” allows him to get close shots.
All the growth of being Embiid's co-star and the 76ers' go-to option will do Maxey well. He gave a nod to one of his former assistant coaches who instilled in him the value of the second scoring level, a pointer that illustrated the track to stardom he saw Maxey on.
“Shoutout to Sam Cassell,” he said, “He always said those are fourth-quarter and playoff shots and, you know, I think we're gonna need some of those.”
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