Give Us More Tyrese Maxey And James Harden Sixers Lineups Please

Tyrese Maxey has been coming off of the bench for the Sixers since returning from his foot injury in late December. During his time as the team’s 6th man, the young guard has had his ups and downs. Coming off of 3 very strong performances (23, 27 and 29 pts, respectively), Maxey may have finally hit his stride. So what, or should we say who, has been the difference-maker? James Harden.

Don’t believe me? Well, let’s look at the numbers.

The James Harden Effect

Tyrese Maxey WITH James Harden on the court:

• 2PT FG – 53%
• 3PT FG – 43%
• True Shooting (TS) – 61%
• Points – 379

Tyrese Maxey WITHOUT James Harden on the court:

• 2PT FG – 48%
• 3PT FG – 36%
• True Shooting (TS) – 55%
• Points – 475

Source: www.pbpstats.com

One counter-argument you may hear is that Tyrese averages more points-per-game without Harden on the court. While this is true, the stats are skewed as Harden missed 14 games late last year due to a tendon strain in his right foot. Maxey basically took over point during this stretch. However, that doesn’t mean he was more effective without Harden.

What about Joel Embiid?

Why aren’t we giving more credit to the big man? While Joel is the leader of this team and obvious future hall-of-famer, he doesn’t necessary make Maxey more effective. Once again, let’s turn to the numbers.

Tyrese Maxey WITH Joel Embiid on the court:

• 2PT FG – 50%
• 3PT FG – 37%
• True Shooting (TS) – 55%
• Points – 363

Tyrese Maxey WITHOUT Joel Embiid on the court:

• 2PT FG – 50%
• 3PT FG – 41%
• True Shooting (TS) – 59%
• Points – 491

Source: www.pbpstats.com

The Big Three

Finally, let’s look at Maxey’s performance with both Harden and Embiid on the court.

Tyrese Maxey WITH James Harden AND Joel Embiid on the court:

• 2PT FG – 53%
• 3PT FG – 36%
• True Shooting (TS) – 58%
• Points – 180

Tyrese Maxey WITHOUT James Harden AND Joel Embiid on the court:

• 2PT FG – 48%
• 3PT FG – 35%
• True Shooting (TS) – 56%
• Points – 292

Source: www.pbpstats.com

Again, Maxey scores more points without Harden and Embiid, but that’s mainly because he’s the number 1 option without them on the court. He’s throwing up more shots in their absence, but his effectiveness takes a hit. Tyrese thrives with Harden, not so much with Embiid. However, when all 3 stars are on the court, everyone benefits.

Is it time for Maxey to reclaim his role as starter?

Let’s look at Maxey the starter vs Maxey the 6th man. Tyrese Maxey has played 43 games so far this season. He started in 24 of those games. According to www.statmuse.com, Maxey has averaged 23.0 points, 4.3 assists and 3.1 rebounds as a starter. In contrast, Maxey has only averaged 15.9 points, 2.6 assists and 2.3 rebounds coming off the bench. A pretty big difference! Who’s the difference-maker? James Harden.

Harden’s impact on Tyrese Maxey’s performance is undeniable. Harden is an outstanding facilitator on the court, while Maxey shines off the ball. Mad Max also exceeds at fast-break opportunities and Harden is great at getting him the ball in the right spot at the right time.

With only 20 regular season games remaining, and since the Sixers appear to be locked in at the 3-seed, I’d like to see more Maxey-Harden on the court. In fact, it’s about damn time for the young star to build off of his last 3 performances and officially resume his role as a starter on this team!