PHILADELPHIA — It has been a tough stretch for Philadelphia 76ers rookie VJ Edgecombe as the No. 3 overall pick continues to figure out how to handle the NBA schedule. Over his previous four games, he’s shooting just 3-for-17 from deep and averaging 8.8 points per game.

With that being said, this is a lot for Edgecombe to deal with. He’s averaging 37.3 minutes per night and has had to deal with ever-changing game plans geared to slow him down, the rigors of the NBA schedule, and having to figure out the best way to rest on the off days.

Tyrese Maxey, who has had to learn all of these things himself as well, gave his assessment of Edgecombe through this current rough stretch.

“It’s definitely difficult,” Maxey explained. “Like I said, man, this is hard. It’s the first time he’s ever played this many games, back to back to back to back to back, like, what? We’ve been playing less than a month. We’ve already played 11 games. It’s tough, man. He’s playing a lot of minutes, guarded a lot of people. We ask him to do a lot offensively, but he’s a tough kid.”

Edgecombe is certainly tough for a 20-year-old rookie. He has continued to find ways to contribute to winning and has had the mental fortitude to knock down tough shots when the time calls for it.

“A tough kid, tough player, tough young guy, and he gonna figure it out,” Maxey added. “He’s doing a good job. Man, like, even, like, tonight, he didn’t shoot the ball well, I pass him the ball, open 3, knocks it down. Got big stops on the defensive end. So, it’s a grind. It’s a grind. It’s a marathon, not a sprint, and I think in the long run, it’ll work out for him.”

The good thing for Edgecombe is that he is on a good team filled with veterans and they are pushing him to shoot no matter what kind of roll he is on.

“They keep reminding me to stay aggressive,” Edgeombe added. “All these guys played multiple years in the league. They know it can be tough on the kid when they’re going through a stretch when they’re not scoring and things like that, but I just keep being aggressive and play with joy, man. I told Jared (McCain) if I’m not smiling, it’s gonna be a long night, so I try to bring energy, try to do something different to impact the game.”

The Sixers will face the Detroit Pistons on Friday to continue the NBA Cup.