The Philadelphia 76ers came through with an impressive 131-126 win over the Washington Wizards on Wednesday. In the process, Joel Embiid of Yaounde, Cameroon scored 50 points, and reached the half century mark for the sixth time in his NBA career.
However, Embiid is not the first 76ers player to score 50 points in a Philadelphia victory this season. On November 12, guard Tyrese Maxey of Dallas, Texas had 50 points against the defensively inept Indiana Pacers in a 137-126 Philadelphia win.
While the focus in Philadelphia is definitely on Embiid, Maxey has proven to basketball fans just how valuable he is to the 76ers. Last season we discussed the fact that Maxey was better for the 76ers since Philadelphia acquired James Harden. Now with Harden playing for the Los Angeles Clippers, you could make the argument that Maxey is playing even better basketball in 2023-24 than 2022-23.
For one, Maxey is being used a lot in the Nick Nurse system in Philadelphia. He is averaging 38.4 minutes per game, which leads the NBA. Maxey’s statistics are also better than last year. He is averaging 26.9 points per game, 6.7 assists per game, and 4.4 rebounds per game (all career highs). Maxey also has a field goal percentage of .466, three-point percentage of .394, and a field goal percentage of .903. In the last four games for Philadelphia, of which three of them were wins, Maxey has had a minimum of 26 points in every contest.
The 76ers are currently the fourth best team in the Eastern Conference. They are at 13 wins and seven losses, and are two games back of the conference leading Boston Celtics.
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