Tyrese Maxey’s rise to prominence has been one of the Philadelphia 76ers’ main storylines this season. His capacity to step it up in the closing minutes of games has been one of the main factors in his breakthrough campaign.
Maxey has been in the top half of the scoring charts during the fourth quarter of the season. In the last stretch, he produced work on par with NBA players like Steph Curry, Kevin Durant, and LeBron James. Maxey made a huge play in the fourth quarter on Friday night to help the Sixers win.
The Sixers were back at home for the second half of a back-to-back after losing to the New York Knicks on Thursday night. They would be playing the Cleveland Cavaliers without Donovan Mitchell this time.
Despite having difficulty for the majority of the game, Maxey succeeded when it mattered most. Down the stretch, the Sixers were within striking distance, and their All-Star guard helped them get over the halfway point.
Maxey ended with a total of 24 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists, and 2 steals. Nonetheless, only the fourth quarter saw 15 of those 24 occur. Maxey’s late charge helped the Sixers defeat the Cavaliers 104-97 in the end.
This performance demonstrates why Joel Embiid, who has stated numerous times that he searches for Maxey late in games, does what he does. When things really counted, the rookie guard delivered, even on a night when things weren’t going his way.
The Sixers are off on Saturday before playing again on Sunday after defeating the Cavaliers. Next up is a game against the Milwaukee Bucks, who will be facing a number of well-known players.