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Sixers' Tyrese Maxey Thought The Heat Were Going To Draft Him

In an interview with Yahoo! Sports, Maxey says how he wanted to play in Miami

Guard Tyrese Maxey was drafted by the Philadelphia 76ers in 2020, but will always think of the teams that passed him over. 

One of those teams was the Miami Heat and now Maxey is playing a key role in their series in the Eastern Conference semifinals. Game 6 is Thursday in Philadelphia. 

"Miami, Orlando and San Antonio. These were the three teams I thought would draft me," Maxey told Yahoo Sports. "When I started slipping, I was upset, but I kept reminding myself that my dream of getting drafted was coming true."

In 2020, the San Antonio Spurs chose Devin Vassell out of Florida State while the Orlando Magic took Cole Anthony. The Heat selected Precious Achiuwa, who was traded to the Toronto Raptors after playing 61 games in Miami.

Even though the Heat made it to the playoffs every year since, they still might have liked to grab Maxey. The Heat have become known as one of the league's best three-point shooting teams and having a guard like Maxey in the lineup would have fit well.

Achiuwa averaged 5.0 points and only attempted one 3-pointer during his Heat tenure. Maxey is averaging 13.2 points while shooting 39 percent from the arc. 

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Cory Nelson is a contributor to Inside The Heat. He attended Northern Virginia Community College.