Sixers’ Tyrese Maxey Could Return On Friday
Third-year guard Tyrese Maxey, who has been sidelined since November 18 due to a broken bone in his left foot, could return to the Sixers‘ lineup as soon as Friday’s contest in New Orleans, sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).
Maxey will likely have his minutes limited upon his return to the lineup, per Charania. Even a somewhat restricted Maxey will be a huge boon for one of the league’s hottest teams — Philadelphia has won eight straight games.
The most recent official update on the 22-year-old’s status came a few days ago, when head coach Doc Rivers said the combo guard was “making great progress” and was “close” after a Thursday workout. Maxey had a strong start to the 2022/23 season prior to getting injured against the Bucks, averaging career highs of 22.9 PPG, 3.5 RPG, 4.4 APG and 1.0 SPG, along with a .462/.422/.738 shooting line.
Fellow guard De’Anthony Melton is likely to move back to the bench once Maxey returns to action. Shake Milton, who had several strong performances as a starter when Maxey and James Harden were out, could see his minutes reduced as well.
The Sixers are currently 20-12, the No. 5 seed in the East, but only trail No. 2 Milwaukee by one-and-a-half games.
Latest On James Harden
James Harden had little to say about an ESPN report Sunday that he’s considering a return to Houston in free agency next summer, writes Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. Whether the report was legitimate or just a way of letting the Sixers know that he won’t be giving them a discount again, Harden denied any knowledge of it and brushed aside questions before Philadelphia’s Christmas Day game.
“Why would you ask me about that on Christmas, man?” he told a reporter. “You didn’t say Merry Christmas or nothing. You asked me about something that I ain’t even … I’m not answering. I didn’t see nothing.”
The two-year, $68.6MM contract that Harden signed in late July contains a player option for 2023/24. Harden could have demanded more money, but his $33MM salary left the Sixers with enough room under the hard cap to sign three of his friends and former Houston teammates, P.J. Tucker, Danuel House and Montrezl Harrell.
Harden didn’t feel like addressing the rumor after the game either, indicating that he’s happy with the Sixers, who have strung together eight straight wins.
“I’m here. We are playing very well,” he said. “And I don’t know where the report came from. But I’m very excited to be here. We are playing well, and we’re continuing to get better.”
There’s more on the Harden rumor:
- Nets officials were concerned last year that Harden had an interest in going back to Houston, according to Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports. Brooklyn considered the Rockets to be as much of a threat as the Sixers were to sign Harden in free agency, Fischer adds. Sources tell Fischer that Harden began to miss playing in Houston, as well as his position with the organization and in the community, shortly after being traded to Brooklyn in January of 2021.
- Sunday’s report doesn’t change anything about the way Sixers management will approach Harden’s free agency, per Kyle Neubeck of Philly.com. The organization was always prepared for the possibility that the star guard will have other offers to consider. The team is committed to aiming for a championship this season with Harden and Joel Embiid as its main components and will hope to sign Harden to a long-term deal in the offseason.
- If Harden is considering an exit, any trade involving Tyrese Maxey becomes far less likely, adds Neubeck, who states that the Sixers currently aren’t close to making any deals.
- Harden could be a welcome addition as a leader for the Rockets’ collection of young talent, suggests Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. Houston can have more than $45MM in cap room, and there aren’t a lot of other prime options on the upcoming free agent market. However, Feigen also questions whether Harden would be worth a major investment when he’s about to turn 34.
Injury Updates: Middleton, Maxey, Booker, Wright, Tate
After making his season debut on December 2 following offseason wrist surgery, Bucks wing Khris Middleton has now missed four consecutive games with right knee soreness. Head coach Mike Budenholzer provided an update on Middleton’s status ahead of Friday’s game against the Nets, tweets Eric Nehm of The Athletic.
“I think, I would say he is making progress, probably not at the rate we had hoped,” Budenholzer said. “To be able to get work in, to be ready to play — it’s really still, he only played I think four, five games — so there’s still that being ready for an NBA game and all that goes into that. So, we’ll see how the next 24, 48 hours go. … But I think overall we’re encouraged. And I think he’s in a good place and he’ll play when he’s ready. It’s a long season. We have to be patient. It’s hard for Khris. It’s hard for us, but just keep the big picture in mind always.”
While Budenholzer is typically vague when giving health updates, hopefully the fact that Middleton’s knee has been slow to respond doesn’t keep him out of action for much longer. Through seven games (24.6 MPG), the three-time All-Star is averaging 11.1 PPG, 2.6 RPG and 4.4 APG.
Here are some more injury updates from around the NBA:
- Sixers head coach Doc Rivers isn’t confident that Tyrese Maxey will return for Sunday’s matchup against the Knicks, but he provided an encouraging update on Friday, per Gina Mizell of The Philadelphia Inquirer. “He’s making great progress,” Rivers said. “[He] had a great workout [Thursday], so he’s close.” The third-year guard has been sidelined since November 18 after suffering a foot fracture.
- Suns star Devin Booker has been dealing with groin soreness since Saturday’s victory over New Orleans, with Friday marking his third straight missed game. Head coach Monty Williams isn’t sure when the shooting guard will be back in action, according to Gerald Bourguet of PHNX Sports (Twitter link). “He’s been shooting the last couple of days. Not moving as much, but is progressing a bit…he’s chomping at the bit. As you can imagine, Book’s frustrated when he can’t play,” Williams said, adding that he wouldn’t speculate about whether Booker would play on Sunday.
- The Wizards announced that guard Delon Wright, who has missed the team’s past 29 games with a hamstring injury, would be back in action on Friday against Sacramento, per Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington (Twitter link). Wright should bolster the Wizards’ defense, which ranks 22nd in the NBA.
- Jae’Sean Tate has been sidelined since October 30 due to a right ankle injury, having made just three appearances for the Rockets thus far this season. However, head coach Stephen Silas said on Friday that the forward’s return “looks like it will be pretty soon,” tweets Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle.
Sixers Notes: Melton, Maxey, Tucker, Harden
When the Sixers gave up a first-round pick and Danny Green‘s expiring contract for De’Anthony Melton, they knew they were getting a strong defender who could make a three-point shot, but the former Grizzlies guard has given them “more connective tissue in the half court” than they might have expected, writes ESPN’s Zach Lowe (Insider link).
Melton’s play-making and screening ability has been valuable for Philadelphia, according to Lowe, who notes that the team has scored an average of 1.2 points when a Melton screen leads directly to a shot. That’s 17th among 244 players who have set 50 such screens, Lowe writes, citing Second Spectrum. The 24-year-old has also handed out a career-best 3.3 assists per game.
Melton’s presence has helped the 76ers withstand injury absences for James Harden and Tyrese Maxey in the early part of the 2022/23 season. Despite not opening the season as part of Philadelphia’s starting five, Melton has made 20 starts in 27 appearances so far.
Here’s more on the Sixers:
- Given how well the 76ers have played with Melton in the starting lineup (they have a 13-7 record in those games), there has been some speculation about the possibility of bringing Maxey off the bench as the leader of the second unit when he returns from his foot injury. Kyle Neubeck of PhillyVoice.com considers the case for making such a move, but ultimately concludes that it’s probably not in the team’s best interest.
- In his latest mailbag for The Philadelphia Inquirer, Keith Pompey also argues against making Maxey the sixth man once he’s healthy. Pompey’s mailbag explores several other topics, including whether the Sixers’ three-year, $33MM+ investment in P.J. Tucker will turn out as poorly as the four-year, $109MM deal they gave Al Horford in 2019 — given the relative size of the two deals, Pompey believes there’s no comparison between the two, especially since Horford was never a good fit, while Tucker is beginning to show overall improvement in his role.
- In his first seven games back from a foot injury, Harden has averaged nearly 39 minutes per night. However, head coach Doc Rivers isn’t concerned about the former MVP’s heavy recent workload, per Noah Levick of NBC Sports Philadelphia. “I’ll guarantee you, by the end of the year, you’ll look at his numbers and they’ll look great,” Rivers said. “It’s a whole year. That’s why we can’t overdo things when guys have a three-week spike in minutes and all of a sudden we’re overreacting to that. You don’t. We’ve been low on guards, and so guys have to play minutes. And James is one of those guys that can handle minutes. But by the end of the year, his minutes will be down.”
Injury Updates: Hachimura, Zion, Maxey, Wiggins
After missing more than a month with a bone bruise in his right ankle, Wizards forward Rui Hachimura is expected to play Thursday, tweets Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington. The team announced that Hachimura, who has been out of action since November 18, will be available for the game at Utah.
Hachimura was originally diagnosed with ankle soreness, but an MRI revealed the bruise. Head coach Wes Unseld Jr. offered an encouraging progress report on Hachimura last week, saying he had started one-on-one contact work.
Hachimura’s return is welcome news for the Wizards, who had lost 10 straight games before winning Tuesday night in Phoenix. Washington is 12th in the East at 12-20, but the club is starting to get some of its rotation players back after a string of injuries. Bradley Beal returned Sunday after missing two weeks with a hamstring issue, and Delon Wright should be back soon after being sidelined since October 25 with a strained hamstring.
There’s more injury news to pass along:
- Pelicans forward Zion Williamson has been placed in the league’s health and safety protocols and will miss Thursday’s game against the Spurs, according to Christian Clark of NOLA.com. Clark notes that Williamson was able to play 40 minutes Monday, but he wasn’t at practice today. New Orleans also plays on Friday and may be facing an extended stretch without Williamson and Brandon Ingram, whom coach Willie Green has already confirmed will miss both games.
- Sixers coach Doc Rivers told reporters tonight that Tyrese Maxey, who has a broken bone in his left foot, is improving, but there’s still no set timetable for him to return, tweets Kyle Neubeck of The Philly Voice. “We will see him at some point,” Rivers said. “I just don’t know when.”
- Warriors forward Andrew Wiggins may be targeting Christmas Day to try to return from a right adductor strain, tweets Anthony Slater of The Athletic. Wiggins is sitting out tonight’s game at Brooklyn, along with Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Donte DiVincenzo and JaMychal Green.
Sixers’ Rivers Expects Maxey To Miss At Least Two More Weeks
When word first broke that Tyrese Maxey had broken a bone in his left foot, reports indicated that he was expected to miss about three or four weeks. However, with the four-week mark arriving on Saturday, the Sixers guard still isn’t close to returning, head coach Doc Rivers said on Thursday.
“Whatever he has to do, he’s nowhere near it,” Rivers said, per Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. “So I would say he’s out at least, I don’t know, for at least a couple more weeks.”
Rivers had previously told reporters that he hoped Maxey would be able to practice this week, but the 22-year-old hasn’t been able to do any real on-court work yet.
“Nothing is the answer,” Rivers said on Thursday when asked what Maxey was able to do. “I mean, he can shoot. He can run a straight line, but that’s it.
“… He can sprint straight; he just can’t cut or he can’t stop. So it may get better in three days or five or six days. But I don’t see that happening. This is an uneducated guess, but I just can’t imagine him playing any time soon.”
Maxey, who has been sidelined since November 18, played in Philadelphia’s first 15 games of the season before missing the last 12. The team has held its own without him, going 7-5 in his absence despite also being without Joel Embiid and/or James Harden for some of those games.
Maxey appeared to be taking another step toward stardom prior to the injury, averaging a career-best 22.9 PPG, 4.4 APG, and 3.5 RPG on .462/.422/.738 shooting in 36.4 minutes per contest.
Atlantic Notes: Randle, Tatum, Brown, O’Neale, Maxey
After being hit with 12 technical fouls and $130K in fines last season, Knicks forward Julius Randle came into 2022/23 hoping to keep his temper in check and to not be at odds with the referees nearly as often, writes Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News.
Randle, who made a bet with a member of the Knicks organization that he wouldn’t get more than three technical fouls this season, received a pair on Sunday to push his season total to four. He referred to Sunday’s game as a “relapse” and said it was “selfish” of him to get those two techs that resulted in his ejection.
“Hopefully, that last one gets rescinded,” Randle said, per Bondy. “… I’m really trying my best. Sometimes my emotions get the best of me. But that’s just kind of what comes with it.”
Here’s more from around the Atlantic:
- Celtics stars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown spoke to Sam Amick and Jared Weiss of The Athletic about the heartbreak of losing the NBA Finals, the Ime Udoka controversy, and a handful of other topics. Tatum described the Udoka situation as “extremely frustrating,” noting that there’s still a lot that the team hasn’t explained, presumably for legal reasons.
- After missing Brooklyn’s last two games for personal reasons, forward Royce O’Neale is expected to return for Friday’s game in Toronto, a source tells Brian Lewis of The New York Post. As Lewis observes, with O’Neale back, the Nets will be as healthy as they’ve been all season, putting them in position to build some chemistry and perhaps extend their four-game winning streak.
- Sixers head coach Doc Rivers said on Tuesday that he hopes Tyrese Maxey is able to practice with the club later this week, though it’s not trending that way for now, tweets Kyle Neubeck of PhillyVoice.com. Maxey, recovering from a left foot fracture, has been doing some running and shooting, but hasn’t yet been able to fully practice.
Sixers Notes: Simmons, Embiid, Maxey, Offseason Moves
Before Ben Simmons faced the wrath of Philadelphia fans Tuesday night, he spoke to the media about his relationship with some of his former Sixers teammates and admitted that he hasn’t been in contact with Joel Embiid, writes Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. Simmons and Embiid were an uneasy pairing as the Sixers’ two stars during their time together, and they’ve remained distant since Simmons was dealt to the Nets.
“I mean, you’re not cool with everybody,” Simmons said. “You are not texting everybody. I mean, there’s certain people that you don’t talk to all the time. I have friends that I don’t talk to all the time, but we’re still cool. But that’s how life went.”
Pompey notes that the two stars’ games never fit together well and their personalities prevented them from connecting off the court. People close to Simmons thought he was more effective in games that Embiid didn’t play, according to Pompey, and Simmons believed Embiid was taking shots at him through his public comments during last year’s holdout.
Simmons took the high road on Tuesday, telling reporters that he enjoyed his time playing alongside Embiid.
“Obviously, it didn’t work out,” he said. “But you know, that’s life. Not everything works out in your favor. So I wish him the best. Obviously, not a championship … but the best.”
There’s more on the Sixers:
- Simmons believes Philadelphia has a future star in third-year guard Tyrese Maxey, who is currently sidelined with a fracture in his left foot, Pompey adds. “He’s incredible,” Simmons said. “He’s growing. He’s playing with great confidence. For me, when I see him, I love seeing him with the ball. I think he should definitely handle the ball a lot more than what he is, but he’s growing. He’s young. And I can’t wait to see in the future.”
- When considering Simmons’ fallout with the franchise, Sixers management doesn’t get enough criticism for trying to trade him one month into his new contract, Marc Stein argues in his latest Substack piece. Simmons’ five-year extension had just taken effect during the 2020/21 season when president of basketball operations Daryl Morey offered him to the Rockets as the centerpiece in a potential James Harden deal.
- With Maxey, Harden and Embiid all currently injured, the Sixers are in danger of sliding down the Eastern Conference standings until they can get healthy, per Brian Windhorst of ESPN. The team already went through the adversity of a slow start, with Doc Rivers briefly becoming the betting favorite as the first coach to fired. Windhorst notes that part of the problem is limited production from offseason additions, as P.J. Tucker is averaging just 4.0 points per game and Danuel House is contributing 4.5 PPG.
Tyrese Maxey Out 3-4 Weeks With Foot Fracture
Sixers guard Tyrese Maxey has suffered a small bone fracture in his left foot, per Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link). Sources inform Woj (via Twitter) that Maxey will be sidelined for at least three-to-four weeks with the ailment.
Maxey first injured the foot during a 110-102 victory over the Bucks Friday night, and was wearing a walking boot after the game. The team then had Maxey undergo imaging to determine the extent of the injury.
As Tim Bontemps of ESPN tweets, the Sixers are now going to be missing both pieces of their starting backcourt. James Harden continues to recover from a foot strain and remains on track to return to the floor for Philadelphia early next month. In the meantime, even more of the scoring burden figures to fall to Sixers superstar center Joel Embiid.
A 6’2″ combo guard, Maxey had been enjoying a career season in his first 15 games with the club this year, averaging 22.9 PPG on .462/.422/.738 shooting splits, along with 4.4 APG, 3.5 RPG and 1.0 SPG.
Tyrese Maxey To Undergo MRI After Injuring Left Foot
9:37pm: Head coach Doc Rivers said Maxey was in a walking boot after the victory over Milwaukee, and while he anticipates Maxey will miss some time, he won’t know for sure until tomorrow’s MRI (Twitter link via ESPN’s Tim Bontemps).
8:08pm: Sixers guard Tyrese Maxey will undergo an MRI on his left foot Saturday after injuring it in Friday’s game against the Bucks, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).
Initial X-rays on his foot were negative, sources tell Wojnarowski (via Twitter).
Maxey was having an excellent first half prior to the injury, recording 24 points (9-of-12 shooting), four rebounds and five assists in 21 minutes. He was ruled out for the second half.
Evidently the injury occurred when Maxey was fouled, as he was clearly limping, frustrated and in a lot of pain. He went straight to the locker room after shooting his free throws, per Kyle Neubeck of PhillyVoice.com (Twitter link).
Fellow guard James Harden remains sidelined with his own foot injury, so a potential extended absence for Maxey would obviously be difficult for the Sixers to overcome. However, there’s no reason to believe that’s the case yet, since he won’t have the MRI until tomorrow.
The 22-year-old is averaging 22.8 points, 3.4 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 1.1 steals on .448/.408/.750 shooting through 14 games (37.5 minutes) for Philadelphia. As a former first-round pick in his third season, Maxey will be eligible for a rookie scale extension next summer.