PHILADELPHIA — The Philadelphia 76ers made the big move to acquire James Harden from the Brooklyn Nets at the deadline, and he has been a big reason for the Sixers moving up in the standings.
Harden has made everybody around him better and that includes second-year guard Tyrese Maxey, who has continued to take big steps forward as a 21 year old.
Maxey had another big finish after a slow start on Monday. He scored 17 points, 13 after halftime, in a 121-106 win over the Chicago Bulls at home. He continues to show he has been able to grow as a player, and Bulls coach Billy Donovan was impressed with Maxey’s growth even before the game started.
“He’s gotten a lot better,” Donovan said of Maxey before the game. “Probably for someone like him, I’m hopeful that a guy like Ayo (Dosunmu) for us can make the same kind of significant jump after the experience. He got a lot of really good experiences last year. I genuinely think that it’s always a good sign when a young player is afforded an opportunity to get a lot of significant minutes and you see a huge growth next year.”
To Donovan’s point, Maxey made a big impact in his rookie season off the bench and he had some big games in the playoffs. He has made a big jump in his second season and become a huge part of this Philadelphia team.
“I always think it’s a little bit concerning sometimes when guys get a lot of minutes, they get that experience, you wanna see them take another jump,” Donovan added. “I think for him, he’s taken another jump from where he was last year to this year. I do think some of that jump has been based on experience.”
There is nothing quite like experience in the NBA. When a player is able to get some time in the league, understand what it takes to succeed in this league, and then go out and get the job done, that makes a big difference for any player. Maxey has been a big example of that.
“Give him a lot of credit,” Donovan finished. “I really noticed that in Oklahoma City when I was with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, his rookie year with the Clippers, really came off the bench, started some, got to the first round of the playoffs, and he took all his experiences that year and then in the second year, he made a huge jump so I give him a lot of credit and their staff a lot of credit. They’ve obviously put a lot of work in and he’s made a huge jump.”
This post originally appeared on Sixers Wire! Follow us on Facebook!
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