Tyrese Maxey
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The Philadelphia 76ers' Tyrese Maxey admits the team's without Joel Embiid for the third game in a row.
Tyrese Maxey and the Philadelphia 76ers returned from the NBA All-Star break with a home matchup against the Atlanta Hawks. For the third game in a row, Joel Embiid was not on the court.
Since the start of February, Embiid has been in and out of the Sixers’ lineup, breaking a positive trend of avoiding consecutive absences since December. In the six games leading up to the break, Embiid missed half of the action. He was dealing with knee soreness, which has become a common trend over the past year.
Last year’s issues are popping up once again for Maxey and the Sixers. High-usage stars beyond himself can’t find a way to stay on the court. As a result, it’s leading to an inconsistent role for everybody. On February 19, Maxey admitted just how difficult it is to battle through constant changes while battling against challenging opponents every night.
“It definitely is [tough] playing multiple styles of basketball,” Maxey told reporters following Thursday night’s 10-point loss against the Atlanta Hawks.
“That’s why I said for myself, like a couple of games ago. Like, it’s weird, you know, I’ve had a successful year, but I’ve played three different roles. You know what I mean? And that’s difficult, but it comes with it sometimes.”
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“I’m having a successful year, but I played three different roles.”
Tyrese Maxey has had to adapt from game to game based on which teammates are available. | @FultonBank
The Philadelphia 76ers’ Biggest Mystery Is Getting Hard to Manage
The Sixers entered the 2024-2025 NBA season missing Joel Embiid and Paul George off the bat. As Maxey dealt with an injury that took him off the court early on, followed by an eventual season-ending injury, many believed that his career-high numbers amid a down year didn’t equal success. The adjustment was too much for Philly to overcome last season.
This year, the Sixers managed to get a healthy Joel Embiid from the jump. Over time, he returned to an All-Star-caliber form, while Paul George eventually made his season debut and contributed to some quality minutes throughout the first stretch of the season.
Unfortunately, George was suspended after 27 appearances. He won’t return to the court until late March. Embiid is day-to-day, dealing with knee-related concerns, along with a shin issue. The Sixers haven’t grown concerned enough to take Embiid out of the lineup for an extended period, but they are back in unknown territory amid a three-game losing streak.
Frustrations Are Valid—Excuses Are Not
Tyrese Maxey, Joel Embiid, Paul George, Philadelphia 76ers, Sixers injury report
GettyTyrese Maxey has been adjusting to different roles in the absence of Joel Embiid this season.
It’s not just Maxey feeling it. The star rookie, VJ Edgecombe, is getting his first taste of this kind of adversity, and he was just as honest on the situation during his postgame press conference on Thursday.
“We miss Joel, I’m being honest, we miss Joel—it’s that simple,” Edgecombe told reporters. “He’s a walking 30 points. He’s a big presence, he requires so much gravity. So, now all of the attention is on Tyrese and we got to make his job easier. Obviously, I’m going to be honest, we miss Joel, bro. … But his health is more important than anything. We just pray that Joel feels 100 percent.”
The message is clear from Edgecombe and Maxey, but the Sixers understand that they’ve proven they can stay afloat without the seven-time All-Star on the floor earlier this season. So, they need to find their way back to that.
“That’s not an excuse that you can use,” Maxey expanded. “You gotta go out there with what we have out there and try to win games. Like, we’re in the games, have chances to win, playing a bad third quarter, slow start to the fourth quarter, and just couldn’t recover. We got to make plays, man. We gotta make plays. Guys gotta make plays. Just gotta go out there and be aggressive. Don’t be nervous or scared to make a play, or make a mistake. Be aggressive, man, and go out there, and just play.”
Maxey and Edgecombe combined for 48 points on Thursday night. It wasn’t enough to overcome the 27-30 Hawks, who waltzed into South Philly to pick up a statement 117-107 win. The Sixers are sitting sixth in the Eastern Conference with a 30-25 record before heading into their back-to-back set this weekend.
The Sixers haven’t collapsed, but frustration is boiling over. A simple return for Joel Embiid this weekend could reverse the mood of the team. The plan is to have Embiid reevaluated ahead of Saturday’s action against the New Orleans Pelicans. He could have a chance to take the floor in New Orleans on Saturday or Minnesota on Sunday, depending on how the next evaluation period goes.