The Sixers gleefully defied the odds Monday night in Cleveland.
KJ Martin started for the first time this season, Buddy Hield starred in the fourth quarter, and the undermanned Sixers held on to beat a Cavs team that had won 17 of its last 18 games.
Beyond the Sixers’ outstanding collective effort, head coach Nick Nurse saw meaningful individual progress from Tyrese Maxey.
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“Last night was another step,” Nurse said Tuesday of Maxey, who posted 22 points and nine assists. “You notice he got to some different spots to score the ball last night, and that’s another step in growth for him.”
Maxey made a couple of crucial mid-range jumpers late in Monday’s fourth quarter, shifting pace and rising confidently into his shots.
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“He didn’t have to do one of his two main things, which is blow by you and go all the way or step back and shoot the three,” Nurse said. “He found a spot on the court, went to it, vaulted up and knocked it down in tough circumstances.”
New teammate Cameron Payne has been impressed by Maxey’s talent and maturity at 23 years old.
Like Nurse, the veteran point guard also believes there’s room for Maxey to keep developing.
“Man, he’s tough,” Payne said. “Shoutout to him being an All-Star, first and foremost. … He has a great feel for the game. He knows how to get downhill, he knows how to create contact, get fouls. That’s huge for a lot of guys that are young in the league. They don’t really pick up on how to get fouls so early, so big shoutout to him.
“I think probably just seeing more of the game … being more of a point guard and putting guys in position. Like, ‘Kelly, I need you to come out left!’ … Being a chess player sometimes instead of always just (being in) attack mode is something for Tyrese to be better at, but we’re learning.
“I know we were talking a lot during the game last night. We pulled out the win, but we were talking a lot about how to get more fouls, how to get to the line when we’re in the bonus. Just little things like that, but nothing major, man. He’s amazing.”
Maxey went 42 minutes against the Cavs, putting his season average at 37.2. As a first-time All-Star (and 3-Point Contest competitor), he’s the one Sixer who won’t have a true break after the team’s Wednesday matchup vs. the Heat.
Joel Embiid (left knee meniscus procedure), Tobias Harris (left hip impingement), De’Anthony Melton (lumbar spine stress response), Nicolas Batum (left hamstring strain) and Robert Covington (left knee bone bruise) will all remain out against Miami. Harris, Melton and Batum were partial participants in Tuesday’s practice, Nurse said, and Melton took part in 3-on-3 scrimmaging afterwards.
The Sixers’ health situation has been woeful recently, but Nurse expects the All-Star break will help. Kyle Lowry, who officially signed Tuesday night with the Sixers, is on board now as well.
“Hardly anybody is not at least tired, or nicked up or banged up a little bit, right? So it should give us a chance to get a few guys back — and then there are a couple guys that are probably playing through a little bit of stuff as well,” Nurse said. “Probably the best news of it all is I think everybody’s finally out of the sickness for now — actually on the other side of it. So that’s also good news.”
Paul Reed was among the players who played through the illness Nurse mentioned, but he’s felt good the last few games and is the lone Sixer to have missed no time thus far. Reed made a giant play in the final seconds Monday, rejecting All-Star Cavs guard Donovan Mitchell at the rim before Darius Garland’s unsuccessful buzzer-beating three-point attempt.
With Embiid sidelined, Reed’s started the last seven games and grabbed multiple offensive rebounds in each of them. Nurse has asked Reed to lean on his strengths — hustle, rebounding, defensive activity — and aim for greater consistency.
How does he feel Reed’s done in those areas as a replacement starter?
“He’s gotten better lately. He’s certainly done that,” Nurse said. “I think he’s gotten the extra possessions, he’s gotten the big rebounds. He’s understood why he’s been in, why he’s been out with a much better professionalism and all that kind of stuff, which I think goes along with that. He’s good.
“He made a game-winning play last night at the end. He had one of the best, most explosive players in the league coming at him, and he went straight up and down — vertical — and stopped the play. It was a heck of a play in a critical moment. … He probably hasn’t been in that many end-of-game (situations) with the game on the line like that, so that was a big step forward for him.”
The Sixers also got a clutch contribution Monday from Ricky Council IV.
The tenacious rookie drained two free throws with 10.1 seconds left, showing no nerves.
“I was like, ‘This is the moment I’ve been waiting for,’ honestly,” Council said. “That’s exactly what I said to myself. Big shots to help us beat the No. 2 team in the East at the moment. I wanted those bad.”