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PHILADELPHIA -- It was a tough end to the season for Philadelphia 76ers star Tyrese Maxey. The fifth-year guard out of Kentucky had his season cut short after just 52 games due to a right finger sprain and he also was dealing with a lower back sprain that he suffered in his final game of the season on March 3.
Overall, Maxey's numbers were good. He averaged 26.3 points, 6.1 assists, and 3.3 rebounds. However, his efficiency was way down as he shot just 43.7% from the floor and 33.7% from deep.
There are a number of factors as to why Maxey's shooting percentages were down as he got off to a slow start without Joel Embiid and Paul George on the floor. He received a ton of defensive attention from opponents and he also shot poorly in the final three games he played due to the right finger sprain.
"It’s actually progressing really good," Maxey said of his finger. "I was just talking to my trainer about it a little bit, and he was just saying, like, I think I still need, like, off of it another month before I started doing any type of basketball stuff. I got to get the swelling to calm down and the pain to calm down, but it definitely does feel better."
Maxey initially injured the finger in a matchup with the Brooklyn Nets on Feb. 22. He tried to play through it and be there for his team, a testament to his growth as a leader, but he wasn't able to impact the game as much as he normally does and it was tough for him.
"It sucks because I know when I when I got hurt, when I hurt it the Brooklyn game, I was just like you know what? I'm trying anyway, try anyway," Maxey explained. "I just couldn't do it. I couldn't do it. I tried the best I could, like, four games. Then, when I ramped up trying to come back, it swelled up really bad on me again. It's just like, it just sucks because I think at the end of the day I love basketball, I wanna be out there with my teammates no matter what the circumstance is. It’s just basketball is a dream come true to be able to step on this court. I never take it for granted."
As far as Maxey's overall season is concerned, it was certainly up and down:
"So I looked at—since I've been out—I looked at two things," Maxey said. "The way I started the season, and like the shots that I would take, I was taking. The responsibility that I had, my assists numbers, all those different things, and I felt like at that time, there was no Jo, no Paul, and I felt like it was a lot of weight on my shoulders. I felt like once I let that weight go, and then I told everybody, once December hit around—I can’t remember the exact date—but I found my joy back and then I looked at that time period. From that time period all the way up to the Brooklyn game when I got hurt, and honestly, the biggest thing was just me being at peace with myself."
Peace. That's a word Maxey is looking for as he heads into the offseason. He and the rest of the Sixers need a bit of a mental reset in order to go into the offseason looking to move on from a dreadful season.
"Me being at peace with the game," Maxey finished. "Me being at peace with talking to guys and coaches and everything and I do have a lot of mental notes of like, the game, like, as far as my skills and stuff that I want to bring back or that want to get better at. But that's neither here or there, I’ll talk about that next year. Honestly, I think the biggest thing right now is, I think we all need a mental break. We need a mental break. A mental reset. Figure out how this franchise moves forward from his, but again, I mean, the best thing I could possibly say is the best thing we can do is go up. We can't go any further."
This article originally appeared on Sixers Wire: Sixers' Tyrese Maxey gives update on finger injury, offseason plans
Continue reading...
Overall, Maxey's numbers were good. He averaged 26.3 points, 6.1 assists, and 3.3 rebounds. However, his efficiency was way down as he shot just 43.7% from the floor and 33.7% from deep.
There are a number of factors as to why Maxey's shooting percentages were down as he got off to a slow start without Joel Embiid and Paul George on the floor. He received a ton of defensive attention from opponents and he also shot poorly in the final three games he played due to the right finger sprain.
"It’s actually progressing really good," Maxey said of his finger. "I was just talking to my trainer about it a little bit, and he was just saying, like, I think I still need, like, off of it another month before I started doing any type of basketball stuff. I got to get the swelling to calm down and the pain to calm down, but it definitely does feel better."
Maxey initially injured the finger in a matchup with the Brooklyn Nets on Feb. 22. He tried to play through it and be there for his team, a testament to his growth as a leader, but he wasn't able to impact the game as much as he normally does and it was tough for him.
"It sucks because I know when I when I got hurt, when I hurt it the Brooklyn game, I was just like you know what? I'm trying anyway, try anyway," Maxey explained. "I just couldn't do it. I couldn't do it. I tried the best I could, like, four games. Then, when I ramped up trying to come back, it swelled up really bad on me again. It's just like, it just sucks because I think at the end of the day I love basketball, I wanna be out there with my teammates no matter what the circumstance is. It’s just basketball is a dream come true to be able to step on this court. I never take it for granted."
As far as Maxey's overall season is concerned, it was certainly up and down:
- 4 games in October: 37.8 FG%, 22.9% 3FG%
- 8 games in November: 44.5% FG%, 40.6% 3FG%
- 12 games in December: 42.9% FG%, 35.1% 3FG%
- 16 games in January: 46.9% FG%, 34.4% 3FG%
- 10 games in February: 45.5% FG%, 33.3% 3FG%
- 2 games in March: 14.8% FG%, 11.1% 3FG% (playing through injury)
"So I looked at—since I've been out—I looked at two things," Maxey said. "The way I started the season, and like the shots that I would take, I was taking. The responsibility that I had, my assists numbers, all those different things, and I felt like at that time, there was no Jo, no Paul, and I felt like it was a lot of weight on my shoulders. I felt like once I let that weight go, and then I told everybody, once December hit around—I can’t remember the exact date—but I found my joy back and then I looked at that time period. From that time period all the way up to the Brooklyn game when I got hurt, and honestly, the biggest thing was just me being at peace with myself."
Peace. That's a word Maxey is looking for as he heads into the offseason. He and the rest of the Sixers need a bit of a mental reset in order to go into the offseason looking to move on from a dreadful season.
"Me being at peace with the game," Maxey finished. "Me being at peace with talking to guys and coaches and everything and I do have a lot of mental notes of like, the game, like, as far as my skills and stuff that I want to bring back or that want to get better at. But that's neither here or there, I’ll talk about that next year. Honestly, I think the biggest thing right now is, I think we all need a mental break. We need a mental break. A mental reset. Figure out how this franchise moves forward from his, but again, I mean, the best thing I could possibly say is the best thing we can do is go up. We can't go any further."
This article originally appeared on Sixers Wire: Sixers' Tyrese Maxey gives update on finger injury, offseason plans
Continue reading...
