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Sixers player grades: Tyrese Maxey leads shorthanded group past Kings

The Philadelphia 76ers have been shorthanded for the entirety of this current road trip. However, Monday’s contest with the Sacramento Kings was a different story as they were down every single starter from the 2020-21 team that finished with the No. 1 seed.

In order to come away with a win in Sacramento, they had to dig deep and their 21-year old point guard stepped up again when the time called for it. Tyrese Maxey shook off a slow start as he finished with 24 points to help the Sixers knock off the Kings 102-94 on the road. It was a win the team needed in the worst way when considering everything that has been going on with them and it was impressive considering the tough circumstances.

Matisse Thybulle added 15 points and three steals, Shake Milton had 16, Isaiah Joe added 11, and Andre Drummond had nine points, 23 rebounds, and three blocks. Georges Niang also added 12 and five rebounds and Furkan Korkmaz had 11 and six assists to chip in for a victory.

Here are the player grades following a big win:

Tyrese Maxey: B+

Going up against a guy like De’Aaron Fox is not easy as he is one who can quickly get to the basket and use his body and strength to make it tough on opponents. That caused Maxey to pick up two quick fouls, but he was able to shake that off rather quickly. Being a guy who relies on quickness of his own, Maxey got into the paint and was able to use his variety of moves to finish around the basket. He was also knocking down midrange jumpers and continues to show off an impressive offensive game. He did seem to tire a bit after halftime as he is being asked to do a lot with the team missing so much firepower.

Furkan Korkmaz: C+

The Korkmaz struggles continued in this one. He is getting good looks, but at the moment, he is really having trouble converting those good looks. He is a much better shooter than he’s shown so one has to think that this slump will end soon, but this has been tough to watch for the most part. To his credit, he did find a way to get hot in the fourth quarter to help the Sixers get back into this game.

Matisse Thybulle: A-

It was good to see Thybulle get off to a good start on the offensive end in this one. He had a couple of really nice cuts off the ball in order to get himself open for easy buckets and he also knocked down a triple in the opening quarter and shot well for the game. Combined with his usual elite defensive efforts, the Sixers had to like what they saw from him in this one. He was a big help against Buddy Hield late in this one.

Georges Niang: C+

Niang received a lot of good looks as he benefited from the strong play of Maxey, but he could not convert them. He has to be able to knock down those looks, especially with this shorthanded unit. He also had issues on the defensive end against some of Sacramento’s athletes. To his credit, he was able to put the ball on the floor and make some big shots in the fourth quarter.

Andre Drummond: B+

This has been an overall rough road trip for Drummond, but he was absolutely terrific on the defensive end in this one. He had three blocks in the first quarter alone, including an absolute stuff of Harrison Barnes, and the Kings began thinking twice about challenging Drummond at the basket. He also was much more active on the glass after struggling a bit in that respect in the first four games of this trip. He made some big plays in the fourth in order to help close this one out. The only drawback was the foul trouble he got into which hurts at the moment with the lack of depth. Tristan Thompson was a big problem for the Sixers when Drummond had to go to the bench.

Shake Milton: B

Once Maxey went into early foul trouble, Milton came in and gave the team a needed spark. He scored eight points in the first quarter while knocking down two triples and they really needed his production. He was aggressive getting into the paint and he also did not hesitate on any open looks he received.

Isaiah Joe: B-

Along with Milton, Joe gave the Sixers a big boost off the bench. He is beginning to learn how to move off the ball and find open looks from deep and he gave the Kings some trouble in that respect. He was knocking down open triples which then forced Sacramento to react to him and he adjusted by putting the ball on the floor and getting easy baskets that way.

Charles Bassey: C+

Bassey continues to impress with his activity on the glass in his short bursts and he has a nice touch around the basket. He is also an impressive positional defender. He is a guy who knows how to handle himself and the Sixers are benefitting from a very confident kid right now. The only issues were with the energy of Thompson off Sacramento’s bench and the number of fouls he committed.

Paul Reed: C-

It’s obvious that Bassey has surpassed Reed on the depth chart. While he did get a bit of an opportunity in this one, he did not do much to make a case to earn more minutes. The positive for him is that he picked up fewer fouls than Bassey did.

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