Tyrese Maxey has career night and makes history

The Philadelphia 76ers were gifted Kentucky’s Tyrese Maxey in the first-round of the 2020 NBA Draft. A lottery talent that slipped due to concerns over his size and shooting, Maxey put all his haters to shame on Saturday as the Sixers took on the Nuggets.

Philadelphia entered the game with seven active players, as contact tracing protocols forced them to bench players like Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons and Seth Curry.

While the Sixers stood little chance to win, the opportunity for some players to showcase their value was there. Maxey took full advantage of said opportunity as he erupted for 39 points.

The Sixers did end up losing 115-103, but the rookie guard certainly showed his dynamic scoring. Maxey was the only players in the game to hit 30 points and was one of two players to even get above 20. He ended as one of six Sixers to get to double figures.

Coming into the game, Maxey averaged 6.9 points, 6.8 shots and 15.7 minutes per game. That’s why his 39 points explosion in 44 minutes and with 33 shots shocked many. Maxey finished the game 18-for-33 and also 3-for-8 from downtown.

According to Reuben Frank, Maxey became the youngest player in 76ers history to score 35 points in a single game. Maxey also became just the 11th player in NBA history to log 35 points, five boards and five assists prior to their 21st birthday.

An interesting note in that despite being so quick and shifty, Maxey didn’t get to the line. Despite not getting to the line, Maxey did only have two turnovers.

Overall, this was easily the young former Wildcats best game of his short career.

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