Why Did Tyrese Maxey Return to Sixers' Starting Lineup vs. Mavs?

It seemed there was only a matter of time before Tyrese Maxey would return to the Philadelphia 76ers’ starting lineup. While Maxey came off the bench for 17 of the 18 games leading up to Wednesday night’s matchup in Miami, it was becoming clear the Sixers might have to go back to what worked offensively last season when the team acquired James Harden.

On Wednesday, the Sixers faced the Miami Heat without Joel Embiid available. With the big man battling foot soreness once again, Embiid got the night off. Instead of plugging in another center, the Sixers moved PJ Tucker to the five and allowed Maxey to start for the first time since January 21.

How did that go? Maxey drilled 59 percent of his shots from the field and averaged 57 percent from beyond the arc. He finished the game with 27 points, seven assists, four rebounds, and one steal as the Sixers cruised past the Heat with a 23-point victory.

The young guard’s performance once again re-ignited the public’s opinion that Maxey should return to the Sixers’ starting five. The following night, even with Joel Embiid back in the mix, Maxey got the nod to start, with De’Anthony Melton coming off the bench for the first time since January 12.

After the game, Doc Rivers explained his decision to start Maxey once again.

“We just wanted a quick start,” said Rivers, according to Sixers Wire’s Ky Carlin. “We felt like playing last night (in Miami) that if we can get off to a quick start, it would be great. We did offensively. We just couldn’t get stops. We couldn’t get stops the whole night.”

Maxey had the tough task of guarding Dallas Mavericks’ superstar guard, Kyrie Irving. In the first half, Irving and Luka Doncic put on a shooting masterclass, generating 45 points combined. By the end of the game, they each produced over 40 points, breaking a franchise record. Meanwhile, Maxey had a quiet offensive performance through his first 15 minutes of action, as he scored just seven points.

However, Maxey was nearly unstoppable in the fourth quarter as he helped the Sixers climb back from a 25-point deficit. By knocking down seven of his 11 shots from the field, Maxey scored 17 points in his final 12 minutes on the court.

The Sixers didn’t come away with a comeback win on Thursday night. Instead, they came up short with a 133-126 defeat. Maxey finished the game with 29 points on 12-21 shooting from the field and 3-5 shooting from beyond the arc.

Was Maxey’s last two performances in the starting five enough to earn him the starting role over Melton moving forward? “I don’t know,” Rivers added, per Calin. “We go game by game. I’m not worried about that tonight.”

The Sixers will be back on the floor Saturday to face the Milwaukee Bucks.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for All76ers, a Sports Illustrated channel. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.