Tyrese Maxey Delivers Strong Message to 76ers Amid Injury Woes
The All-Star break could not have come at a better time for the Philadelphia 76ers. Over the past few weeks, they've dealt with a litany of injuries to multiple key players.
By far the most notable Sixer sidelined at the moment is Joel Embiid. The reigning MVP suffered a knee injury against the Golden State Warriors on February 7th. After getting a procedure done, Embiid is expected to be re-evaluated in the coming weeks.
Aside from Embiid, the Sixers have been without two other starters for an extended period. Those being Nic Batum and De'Anthony Melton. On top of this, Tyrese Maxey and Tobias Harris have also been in and out of the lineup dealing with injuries.
While it might be easy for the Sixers to roll over given their injury woes, Maxey refuses to let that happen. Following their matchup with the Miami Heat Wednesday, the All-Star guard detailed the speech he gave his team.
Maxey is calling on everyone on the roster to step up and do what they can to help this team remain competitive while they get back to full strength.
"I just wanted guys to go out there and seize the moment, seize the opportunity...Joel is gonna be out for however long Joel's out for. This is time for yall to go out there and not just showcase what y'all can do for this team but really help this team win games," Maxey said. "There's no laying down, there's no just giving up. There's none of that. Guys are really competing and going out there trying to win games."
In their final game before the All-Star break, the Sixers fell to the Heat by a final score of 109-104. Maxey did everything he could to lead the charge, finishing with 30 points, six rebounds, and seven assists. Buddy Hield (22 points, 10 assists) and Paul Reed (18 points, 12 rebounds) were some other notable standouts.
Heading into the final stretch of the regular season, the Sixers find themselves in the thick of the Eastern Conference standings. They currently sit in fifth place with a 32-22 record. However, they are still within striking distance. The Sixers are only two-and-a-half games behind the Milwaukee Bucks, who sit in third place.
