CAMDEN, NJ – As the Philadelphia 76ers look to bounce back from two straight losses, they will likely be looking Tyrese Maxey's way for some crucial help. The budding star can get hot at any moment and is a crucial component of the Sixers offense. According to teammate De'Anthony Melton, the young guard plays somewhat like another young, dazzling point guard: Ja Morant.

After the Sixers' Saturday practice ahead of their third game of the season (a home matchup with the San Antonio Spurs), Melton was asked by a reporter if playing with Maxey is similar to playing with Morant. The 24-year-old guard explained their similarities and differences.

Melton noted that Maxey and Morant are “two young, athletic, electric players that love to get up and down. [They] can score the ball…They're both quick as lightning.” But he also noted that they have “two different games. Tyrese is more of a 3-point shooter, hit you with middies. Ja, he gets to the paint at will, finishing and all that stuff. They're two separate players but at the same time, they're really similar, too.”

Before joining Philly via offseason trade, Melton spent three seasons watching Morant develop into the Memphis Grizzlies' franchise superstar by using his blazing speed, explosive athleticism and playmaking brilliance to crush defenses.

Even though Morant is more of an above-the-rim scorer than Maxey, they both definitely use their speed to their advantage. Maxey, who could join Morant as an All-Star this season, showed off his speed with three transition buckets in the Sixers' loss this past Thursday against the Milwaukee Bucks.

Melton didn't say or hint that the Sixers need to feed Maxey more. He did, however, note the importance of one area of the game where Maxey often finds success. When asked by a reporter what he looks for when he goes off for scoring spurts (like he did on Thursday, scoring seven points in less than six minutes in the second quarter), Melton said that the key is to first get stops on defense and then get out in transition.

“We just gotta continue to play defense, get out in transition,” Melton said. “I think I thrive in transition, so continuing to do that and just having fun with it.”

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The Sixers have used the Maxey-Melton pairing for just 18 total minutes across their first two games. As Doc Rivers looks to stagger his four key players (Maxey, Joel Embiid, James Harden and Tobias Harris), playing the two youngsters with a nose for fast-break opportunities together would be wise.

Last season, Maxey led the Sixers in scoring percentage on transition plays and was narrowly second in points per possession, trailing only 3-point marksman Seth Curry. Melton was third on last year's Grizzlies squad in both transition possessions and points. Morant, of course, was first on the team in each stat. As the Sixers look to get the new guys acclimated, they should lean into Melton and Maxey as fastbreak partners to generate easy offense.

The Sixers will certainly not look to push the pace as much as Morant's Grizzlies do overall (nor should they) but they would certainly benefit from leaning more into fast breaks. They were one of the more efficient teams in transition last season despite not running it very frequently. Maxey's speed is the key to unlocking that area of the game for them and he now has the ideal partner to get after it with.