Tyrese Maxey came into this season talking about the importance of setting a standard. Through the first month of the season, Maxey has effectively achieved that goal while leading the Philadelphia 76ers to a 9-6 record.

Despite Joel Embiid playing in just six games, Paul George not making his season debut until Nov. 17 and multiple other injuries throughout the roster, Maxey has been a constant for the Sixers. The 25-year old, following multiple years of averaging 25-plus points per game, has taken yet another leap forward.

Through 15 games, Maxey is averaging 33.4 points, 4.7 rebounds, 7.9 assists and 1.6 steals per contest. He has poured in one incredible performance after another. His 33.4 points per game currently ranks second in the league. If he maintains this pace through the rest of the season, Maxey would finish just behind Wilt Chamberlain for most points per game in a season in 76ers history.

In a season full of impressive showings, Maxey one-upped all of them when he dropped a career-high 54 points against the Milwaukee Bucks on Thursday night. Every part of his scoring arsenal was clicking, from drilling 3-pointers at the logo to using his speed to get to the basket to mixing in off-balance runners from around the paint.

1️⃣0️⃣ points and counting for @TyreseMaxey pic.twitter.com/7U0qD7Nid7

— Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) November 21, 2025

he’s literally Tyrese Maxey. 💁‍♂️ pic.twitter.com/5Kz1wEffNc

— Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) November 21, 2025

“He’s got a unique kind of double threat, which is the speed, which will get him past people, and then the really deep shooting range,” head coach Nick Nurse said after the win over the Bucks, via Ky Carlin of Sixers Wire. “So, there’s a lot of space he’s playing in there, and again, he’s just really talented. I think that his confidence continues to grow. His teammates’ confidence in him continues to grow as well, and I mean, that’s a big game, but when he’s scoring, it doesn’t surprise me that much.”

Playing on the second half of a back-to-back, the most incredible part of Maxey’s performance was his production in the fourth quarter and overtime. Despite having every reason to start running out of gas, he saved his best for when it mattered most. Maxey willed the Sixers to victory, scoring 22 points in the fourth quarter and overtime. Coming up big in the clutch has been a common occurrence for Maxey. He is averaging 8.9 points while shooting 46.0% from the field and 43.3% from 3-point range in the fourth quarters of games this season.

“He’s special,” George said after the game against the Los Angeles Clippers on Monday, via The Athletic’s Tony Jones. “I thought he had a phenomenal year last year, but it got lost in the season that we had as a team. Because of that, people didn’t really talk about him heading into this season. But, when you watch him just take over games and get us timely buckets, it’s special to see. We’re asking him to do so much. We’re asking him to play a ton of minutes and he’s delivering. He’s the heart and soul of this team. This is similar to what Allen Iverson once did for the city. He’s our battery, and we’re witnessing one of them ones.”

In addition to putting the ball in the hoop, Maxey is also routinely finding other ways to contribute. All the attention is on his 54 points against the Bucks. However, he also filled up the stat sheet by totaling five rebounds, nine assists, three steals and three blocks. Playmaking and defense, once weak points in Maxey’s game, have now also become core pieces of his overall skillset. His 7.9 assists per game this season would be far and away a career high while his 1.6 steals per game are outpaced only by the 1.8 per game he averaged last season.

Maxey’s importance to the Sixers cannot be understated. He is stepping up in every facet of the game, from becoming a more vocal leader to consistently filling up the box score every night. Philadelphia is heavily relying on Maxey, as evidenced by his league-leading 40.7 minutes per game. Maxey’s play this season is elevating him into the MVP conversation. If the Sixers can receive any amount of availability from both Embiid and George to go with Maxey’s elite production, they will have a shot at making some noise in the postseason.