LOS ANGELES — Philadelphia 76ers guard Tyrese Maxey and New Balance announced a partnership to start the 2023 calendar year. Maxey, a third-year guard out of Kentucky, becomes the seventh NBA player to sign with New Balance.

“It’s been great,” Tyrese Maxey said of joining New Balance. “Appreciate them so far, I can’t wait for the future. I think the partnership of it [excites me the most]. They have some really good people over there. They have some really good ideas, some very good community ideas that kind of correspond with the same things that I’m trying to do. It’s been great.”

Maxey joins NBA stars like Kawhi Leonard, Zach LaVine, Jamal Murray, and Dejounte Murray, as well as up-and-comers Darius Bazley and Aaron Nesmith.

“Bringing Tyrese into the New Balance family has been amazing,” said Naveen Lokesh, Head of Global Sports Marketing, Basketball at New Balance. “He has made a big impact since joining the NBA, and his positive energy and drive just add to the excitement around New Balance Basketball. All of the guys on our roster are individuals who are not scared to carve their own path, and Tyrese is absolutely that kind of person and we can’t wait to disrupt the game with him!”

New Balance was founded in 1906 in Boston, so it's no surprise that it continues to take center stage on the East Coast.

“Being on the East Coast, it’s cold and people are big on coats and things like that, and they’re huge on New Balance out here. It’s amazing to see,” Maxey added. “It’s cool to be a part of it now because when I walk around with mine on, they’re complimenting the ones I have on. It’s funny how I always hear them say, ‘Maxey, those jawns right there are fire.’”

Los Angeles Clippers star Kawhi Leonard was the first major NBA athlete to sign with New Balance, so he has been credited as the one who helped build the brand up in the basketball world.

“He kind of paved the way for it,” Tyrese Maxey told ClutchPoints. “He did something different. And I really appreciate him for doing that, because now I can be a part of something special.”

Earlier this month, New Balance and Kawhi Leonard unveiled the brand new KAWHI III.

Kawhi Leonard's first major moment with New Balance came when the then-Raptors star hit “The Shot” in Game 7 against the Sixers. Leonard was wearing his New Balance kicks at the time, and the play jumpstarted New Balance in the basketball world.

“It’s really incredible what it does for our brand,” New Balance GM Trent Casper told ClutchPoints in an exclusive interview. “Number one, all eyes are on Kawhi at that moment so in this same breath, so all eyes are on the New Balance shoes that he’s wearing, so for an athlete to hit a shot like that in that moment, it really was the perfect timing for us to kinda be a springboard for the New Balance basketball brand and really kinda set us in the right direction and we’ve been kinda building from that moment on. We’ve had a few hiccups here and there with some injuries, but Kawhi’s back playing like his old self. I watched the game the other night, and he’s really back to his old self and it’s great to see him back on the court.”

Tyrese Maxey is having a career year in his third season with the Philadelphia 76ers. In 41 appearances, the Sixers guard is averaging 19.5 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 3.5 assists on 45.2 percent shooting from the field and 39.1 percent from beyond the arc.