Sixers guard Tyrese Maxey
Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images
Sixers guard Tyrese Maxey
Following an underwhelming trade deadline, the Philadelphia 76ers can’t escape the talk about Jared McCain.
That comes with the territory of an organization cutting ties with a young player, who immediately has an impact in his new situation.
It also doesn’t help that the Sixers have been up and down since the deal took place.
Following a lopsided loss for Philadelphia against the San Antonio Spurs, Tyrese Maxey was asked about the after-effect of the McCain trade. Is the young guard’s departure that big of a deal?
Tyrese Maxey Speaks On Jared McCain Following The Spurs Loss
Tyrese Maxey
GettyTyrese Maxey addressed Jared McCain on Tuesday night.
“I don’t think we’re dwelling on it,” Maxey told reporters after the game.
“Jared was a close friend of ours, great teammate, great person. I definitely think we miss him, of course. I ain’t gonna lie and say I don’t miss Jared. I’m happy for him. I watch OKC, and I hope he does well every single night that he plays, except for when he plays us, of course.”
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“I ain’t going to lie and say I don’t miss Jared.”
Heading into Tuesday night’s slate of NBA games, McCain had a 10-game sample size to show for with the Thunder.
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Seeing the court off the bench for 19.4 minutes per game, McCain has been averaging 11.8 points while shooting 42% from three. He nearly doubled his production while shooting with more efficiency on a championship-contending team.
During Tuesday’s Thunder-Bulls matchup in Illinois, McCain set the NBA world on fire once again. The second-year guard came off the bench for 25 minutes and shot 8-15 from the field, hitting four of his nine threes, scoring 20 points.
Meanwhile, the Sixers suffered a shorthanded blowout loss against the Thunder’s top contender in the Western Conference.
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A small sample size shouldn’t determine the final verdict of winners and losers in a trade that went down one month ago, but the Sixers are certainly on the wrong side of the situation in the early stages.
Not only is McCain looking like a steal of an acquisition for Oklahoma City, but the Sixers didn’t make a win-now move to follow up. The front office acquired draft picks with hopes of flipping the assets for a player. Any move is now put on hold for the offseason.
Sixers Are Staying Focused On The Current Roster
Tyrese Maxey talking to VJ Edgecombe
GettyTyrese Maxey and the Sixers came up short against the Spurs on Tuesday night.
The deal is done, and the Sixers understand that they need to focus on the players within the building, as they hope to make a jump compared to last year.
“I’ve seen many people traded that I didn’t want to get traded and whatever the case may be, people left in free agency, you can’t dwell on that,” Maxey added.
“You’ve got to focus on people who are in this building. These are the people that you’re going to be with for the rest of the season. If they bring somebody else in, or whatever the case may be, but these are the people that’s going to be with you for the rest of the season and the rest of this stretch run. If you want to try and make a run, you’ve got to focus on that.”
Sitting at 33-28, the Sixers remain sixth in the Eastern Conference amid their two-game losing streak. On Wednesday, March 4, the Sixers will return to the court to take on the Utah Jazz. The game tips off at 7:30 PM ET.