Knaus: Maxey becoming frictionless scoring machine
Ryan Knaus details why Tyrese Maxey's stock is on the rise and how playing alongside James Harden and Joel Embiid have set him up to become a frictionless scoring machine.
Video Transcript
- Sixers guard Tyrese Maxey was drafted outside the top 50 in most fantasy leagues this season. Perhaps, that was due to concerns about his higher profile teammates, but Maxey continues to thrive alongside Joel Embiid and James Harden. It helps that Maxey is 22 years old, while Embiid is 28, and Harden is three.
The Sixers have a championship or bust mentality and will give those veterans rest days throughout the season, which directly benefits Maxey. Look no further than last Friday when Embiid sat out for injury management of his right knee. Without him on the court, Maxey went off for a career high 44 points and nine three pointers in a win versus Toronto. Scoring 27 points on 100% shooting in the first half was fluky, but having the ball in his hands a ton was not. His usage rate jumped more than 6% without Embiid on the court last year.
Playing with Philly's veteran stars isn't bad for Maxey either, and with Harden in town after the All-Star break last year, he increased his scoring to 18.7 points per game on 52% shooting, including 48% from deep. He's not far off those numbers this year, which is a testament to Embiid collapsing defenses, as well as Harden's playmaking abilities. Both of which are helping Maxey become a frictionless, scoring machine.
