Sixers give a lot of praise to Tyrese Maxey for big game in win vs. Nets
The Philadelphia 76ers received a big game from Joel Embiid on the road on Thursday in order to knock off the Brooklyn Nets 110-102 and he will be the main story of this one. However, if it wasn’t for the effort of their 21-year old point guard, they probably don’t win this one.
Tyrese Maxey stepped up in a big way with 25 points and seven rebounds and he knocked down a career-high five triples in order to get the job done. He hit four triples after halftime and he knocked down two clutch ones in the corner in the fourth when Philadelphia really needed it.
When it was all over, Embiid was happy that Maxey took and made those shots. It is something that Embiid has been pleading for all season when it comes to his team on the offensive end of the floor.
“He needs to do it every night,” Embiid said. “He will tell you, I’ve been on him about not just shooting the open ones, just being aggressive and looking for his own shot all year. That’s what he did tonight. He took them and he made them. He needs to do it every night.”
Embiid, playfully, called Maxey “trash” after their win over the Toronto Raptors on Tuesday when Maxey shot only 2-for-11. He gave him some praise in this one.
“You were great today,” Embiid said to Maxey. “That’s how you respond to criticism.”
🤣After talking trash to Kevin Durant you Gotta love Joel Embiid talking trash to Sixers teammate Tyrese Maxey!
"you see what happens when you freakin' shoot 3's? Come on man, shoot the 3!… you were great… that's how you respond to criticism" @JoelEmbiid loves @TyreseMaxey pic.twitter.com/ae0I4dUe6A
— Jeff Skversky (@JeffSkversky) December 31, 2021
Maxey was able to get open for triples in the fourth due to the fact that the Nets were paying such close attention to Seth Curry and Embiid in the pick-and-roll game. Maxey’s defender was paying attention to Curry and Embiid so much that it allowed him to get open looks.
“We started running some plays for Seth and when I was cutting out,” Maxey explained. “I kinda realized that my guy was staying so I just started to loop around to the corner because my guy was staying and helping with the Joel and Seth pick-and-roll and I was just getting wide-open 3s. It’s just that simple.”
Maxey had to do all of this while also defending Nets star James Harden. It was an impressive performance for the young man on the road.
“Tyrese is not afraid and that’s huge,” said acting head coach Dan Burke. “He’s got a big heart and a lot of guts. He’s coming on.”
This post originally appeared on Sixers Wire! Follow us on Facebook!
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