Sixers

Tyrese Maxey Was Already an All-Time Beloved Philly Athlete. Then He Went Out and Got LeBron James

By Matt Schultz

Published: Jul 24th, 2026 · 5:43 PM EDT

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After the LeBron news dropped this morning, I threw on ESPN in my office to hear what the Worldwide Leader had to say, and it’s been on in the background ever since. First Take was on first, then it went to SportsCenter, then I think it was Pat McAfee, and now it’s NBA Today. Through every show, the hosts have been bringing on guests to talk about the LeBron decision, with Brian Windhorst leading the charge every hour. And every time he’s been on screen all afternoon, Windy’s repeated the same thing: LeBron James would never have chosen Philly if it wasn’t for Tyrese Maxey:

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“You may be asking yourself, ‘Why did LeBron choose the Philadelphia 76ers? … (First), he valued winning a championship this season… The second thing is that when you look at how important was to have a comfort level with who’s gonna be on the roster. And I think Tyrese Maxey being a Klutch client, being a guy he’s known for a really long time, that’s a big factor here. Who fits winning where a Klutch client is there that he can really partner with, that he’s got a real history with? Even though Cleveland is home, he doesn’t have a deep history with Donovan Mitchell, with James Harden, with those players. He has a history with Tyrese Maxey. They’ve known each other for a long time. They can say, ‘Let’s work together on this.’ … And so, once you listen to what he said, it really makes his decision more clarifying. And maybe it was the right decision, maybe it was the wrong decision, but I will say this: Philadelphia is now an instantaneous title contender. They certainly were not a month ago, but they certainly are now. And LeBron is a part of that, and that’s where LeBron wants to be, especially if he’s playing for the minimum.” 

It’s hard to believe that Sixers fans now have a reason to appreciate Tyrese Maxey even more than we already do. We already know the guy rules. It’s no secret. Since his arrival in Philly, from the moment he won everyone over with his emotional draft-day interview to now, he’s been nothing but a breath of fresh air:

Tyrese Maxey breaks down in tears of joy after being drafted and tells Sixers fans they won't regret it
by innba

He was the 21st overall pick in the draft and turned himself into an All-NBA player. He works harder than anyone. His play is electric. He’s a joy to watch, both because he’s extremely good and because his play style is just fun. He’s always smiling. He’s always in a good mood. In a league where it’s easy for veterans to get irritable and tired and bitch a ton during the grind of an 82-game season, Tyrese brings positive energy to work every day, and it’s visibly contagious with his teammates.

He’s become a leader in the locker room. He takes rookies under his wing. He has single-handedly kept the vibes of this team from imploding many, many times, most notably during that disastrous 2024-2025 season when the Sixers won 24 games and he was one of the few reasons to even watch night to night. He’s expertly navigated the ups and downs of the Joel Embiid experience — playing the sidekick when Jo’s rolling and healthy and stepping into a score-first, ball-dominant role when necessary, all without ever stepping on anyone’s toes.

By all accounts — according to other players, people around the league, coaches, fans, everyone — Tyrese is as good as they get, exactly the kind of player you hope to have on your favorite team, one of the easiest athletes to root for I’ve ever come across. And again, we all already knew that. This is not news. No one in Philly needs to be reminded of this stuff.

But now, knowing that on top of all that, Tyrese just led the way in bringing LeBron James to the Sixers and finally pushing this long-pathetic franchise into real contender status for the first time in my life, I’m left wondering… How much higher can Tyrese Maxey’s approval rating go in this city? When it’s all said and done, will he be one of the most beloved Philly athletes ever? Could be crack the top five? Could he become the number one, full stop? Is that on the table? If the Sixers win the Finals with this new team, we gotta have the conversation, right? Feel like we’d have to talk it out… Is this nuts… I don’t think this is a nuts thing to think about here… There’s a lot to consider… He landed LeBron, lest we forget…

In any event, a bunch of people deserve credit for the Sixers signing LeBron and the team’s turnaround over the last year, but in my opinion, none more than Tyrese. We would’ve been dead in the water a hundred times over by now if he wasn’t keeping this thing afloat, and then he pulled off the biggest recruitment in Philly sports history for good measure. When this team wins the Finals next year, he should get two rings. It’s only right.