PHILADELPHIA — As the Philadelphia 76ers move into the post-All-Star break portion of the 2023-24 season, their main pieces are dealing with ailments, which will force others to step up.
One player who has answered the call has been undrafted rookie Ricky Council IV. The young forward out of Arkansas has done a great job of filling in and playing minutes that count. He played a big factor in road wins over the Washington Wizards and the Cleveland Cavaliers and had 13 points off the bench in the loss to the Miami Heat.
Council has caught the eyes of his teammates — especially, Tyrese Maxey who continues to take more of a leadership role.
“He’s energetic,” Maxey said of Council following the loss to Miami. “I was watching his workout before the game he was flying around going 100 miles an hour. I was like ‘Hey, man, listen here. You got to play 25 minutes. You need to slow down.’ But just he’s a ball of energy and we need him.”
Needing everybody has been the message Maxey has preached of late. He shared a big message to the team before the team’s Feb. 9 matchup with the Atlanta Hawks that everybody needed to be better and they needed to step up. The play of the other guys will keep them afloat until Joel Embiid and the other ailing Sixers return.
That’s where Council comes in.
“Like I told everybody before the Atlanta game, we’re gonna need everybody to play and everybody go out there and compete extremely hard and I feel like he’s done that,” Maxey added of Council. “It’s funny, like he’s still trying to learn certain positions and what to do on the switch or whatever, but as long as he goes out there and plays extremely hard, it will be OK.”
The Sixers will take on the New York Knicks on Thursday to open play after the All-Star break.
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