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Tyrese Maxey Is Having One of the Best Seasons in Sixers History

Tyrese Maxey may be having the best season of any Sixers guard ever.
Bryan Toporek|
Dec 4, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia 76ers guard Tyrese Maxey (0) dribbles the ball against the Golden State Warriors during the first quarter at Xfinity Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images
Dec 4, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia 76ers guard Tyrese Maxey (0) dribbles the ball against the Golden State Warriors during the first quarter at Xfinity Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images | Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

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Philadelphia 76ers

Between Wilt Chamberlain, Charles Barkley, Julius Erving and Moses Malone, the Sixers have boasted some of the best players in NBA history. Few (if any) are more revered in Philadelphia than Allen Iverson, though.

During his prime, Iverson was the best pound-for-pound scorer in the NBA. The 11-time All-Star and seven-time All-NBA selection reached his apex in 2000-01, when he averaged a league-high 31.1 points and 2.5 steals along with 4.6 assists and 3.8 rebounds per game en route to his first and only league MVP award.

Tyrese Maxey is currently on pace to have an even better season this year.

Through 23 games, Maxey is averaging a career-high 31.5 points, 7.2 assists, 4.7 rebounds and 3.7 three-pointers per game. Iverson had four seasons where he averaged at least 30 points per game, but he only topped the 31.5-point mark in 2005-06. He did average at least seven assists and three rebounds in each of his final two 30-point seasons, although he was nowhere near as prolific of a three-point shooter as Maxey.

That's one of the main factors separating Maxey from Iverson. The other is efficiency.

After shooting 46.1 percent during his sophomore season in 1997-98, Iverson never topped 45 percent again until his first full season in Denver one decade later. Maxey has shot at least 45 percent from the field in four of his first five seasons, and he's at 46.7 percent overall and 39.1 percent from three-point range this year.

Maxey might not drag this year's Sixers to the NBA Finals like Iverson did in 2000-01, but it's time to put his season into proper historical context.

Where Maxey's Season Ranks Among All-Time Sixers Greats

Basketball Reference has box plus/minus figures dating back to the 1973-74 season. Apologies to Hal Greer—a Sixers icon throughout the 1960s—in advance.

Maxey currently has a 6.7 box plus/minus this season. That's the best single-season mark of any Sixers guard in franchise history. Iverson topped out at 6.1 during his MVP season in 2000-01 and never finished above 6.0 in any other year.

Season-long stats such as win shares and value over replacement player won't tell us much at this time of year, although Maxey is currently 27th on the all-time franchise leaderboard with .189 win shares per 48 minutes this season. Maxey and Iverson are also the only two players in Sixers history ever to average at least 31 points and seven assists per game in a single season.

Maxey scored 20-plus points in each of the Sixers' first 21 games this season before finishing with only 14 points in their blowout win over the Giannis Antetokounmpo-less Milwaukee Bucks on Friday. That was tied for the second-longest season-opening streak of 20-plus points in Sixers history—tied with Iverson, naturally—trailing only Joel Embiid in 2023-24. (Let's not talk about what caused that streak to end.)

Maxey is also the only player in franchise history to average 30-plus points while shooting at least 46.0 percent overall and 39.0 percent from three-point range. In fact, no player in Sixers history has averaged even 25 points per game while shooting that efficiently.

Maxey is playing a league-leading 39.9 minutes per game, which is helping him inflate his per-game stats. Granted, that makes his efficiency that much more impressive, as he's still been able to torch teams despite having tired legs. As Tom Haberstroh noted Monday, Maxey is one of only five players who made an All-Star or All-NBA team within the past three seasons and has yet to miss a game this year.

With Embiid and Paul George shuffling in and out of the lineup for the second straight year, the Sixers could have found themselves repeating their dismal 2024-25 campaign. Maxey has taken it upon himself to ensure that doesn't happen.

The highlight of Maxey's season thus far came against the Bucks in late November. He scored a career-high 54 points to go with nine assists, five rebounds, three steals and three blocks, which put him in historic company.

According to Justin Kubatko, Maxey became only the fourth player in NBA history to record at least 500 points and 100 assists through his first 15 games of a season, joining Iverson, James Harden and Luka Dončić. Maxey and Wilt Chamberlain are the only two players in Sixers history ever to have at least 50 points and nine assists in a game. Maxey and Dončić are the only two players in NBA history with at least 50 points, nine assists, three steals and three blocks in a game.

What we're witnessing this season is special, folks. Enjoy it while it lasts.

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Bryan Toporek
BRYAN TOPOREK

Bryan Toporek has been covering the Sixers for the past 15-plus years at various outlets, including Liberty Ballers, Bleacher Report, Forbes Sports and FanSided. Against all odds, he still trusts the Process.