BBNBA: Tyrese Maxey, Shaedon Sharpe continue to impress early in season

The future looks incredibly bright for the NBA ‘Cats that were in action last night. Tyrese Maxey dropped 31 for the 76ers while Shaedon Sharpe added 15 from the bench for the Trail Blazers, both in losing efforts. Elsewhere, Minnesota was the site of a Wildcat vs. Wildcat battle on Wednesday night. Keldon Johnson and Karl-Anthony Towns both showed out in the Timberwolves’ victory over the San Antonio Spurs. Johnson and Towns both finished with 20-plus in a high-scoring affair.

Let’s dive into today’s recap.

Standing at 6-foot-2 from Garland, Texas…

Tyrese Maxey. The new founding father of Philadelphia continues to shine in the City of Brotherly Love. Maxey recorded 31 points, five rebounds, and six assists in Philly’s 119-109 loss against the Raptors. The Dallas-suburb native played 43 minutes on Wednesday night, the most out of anyone on the floor.

Doc Rivers’s trust in Maxey can’t go unnoticed. Maxey, now a cemented starter for Philly, has shown just why he deserves the nod on a loaded 76ers lineup. Although we’re just five games into the season, Maxey is averaging 20 PPG alongside perennial all-stars Joel Embiid and James Harden.

If we fast forward to February in Salt Lake City, All-Star weekend could very well have two 76ers in action. It’s pretty safe to say Joel Embiid will be there barring an injury. However, if Maxey continues to perform for Philly in a stacked Eastern Conference, he could hear his name being called at the All-Star Game.

Making his name known

Shaedon Sharpe posted a career-high in minutes and points in Portland’s 119-98 loss against Miami. Sharpe had 15 points and eight rebounds in 21 minutes of play on Wednesday night. Even with a limited amount of minutes given to him, Sharpe is delivering with every second that he’s earned.

Through five games, Sharpe is averaging 8.4 PPG in 16.4 MPG, practically scoring every other minute. With minutes and points increasing, maybe it isn’t too crazy to think he could start at a later point in the season. Although the Trail Blazers have opted to go with a 2-3 punch of Anfernee Simons and Josh Hart alongside future Hall-of-Famer Damian Lillard, their jobs may not be that safe with Sharpe adding valuable minutes from the bench.

On the other side of the floor for the BBNBA, Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro were able to counter Lillard’s 22-point night perfectly. Herro posted 14 points while Adebayo dropped 18 as the Heat were able to move to 2-3 on the year. Tyler “The Bucket” Herro continues to start for Miami after his Sixth Man of the Year campaign last season.

Nothing but scoring in Minnesota

If Big-12 football had an NBA comparison it might be the San Antonio Spurs versus the Minnesota Timberwolves. Minnesota took this contest 134-122, resulting in both squads moving to 3-2 on the year. Big performances from Keldon Johnson and Karl-Anthony Towns headlined the night with both NBA ‘Cats recording at least 20 points.

Johnson continues to lead a rebuilding Spurs lineup. Wednesday night saw him go for 27 points, four rebounds, and three assists in 33 minutes played. Johnson is averaging 21.8 PPG and shows no sign of stopping; he’s proving to be the first option in San Antonio. On the other hand, Towns doesn’t have to be the number one option every night anymore.

In a different role, where he isn’t “the guy” but there are multiple guys that can go and give you 20 a night, Towns added 21 points, four rebounds, and seven assists. Anthony Edwards went nuclear for the T-Wolves, dropping 34 to go along with a sneaky 20 from Jaden McDaniels and 23 from Jaylen Nowell, showing that Minnesota can score with anyone. If Towns is the third-leading scorer on any given night, watch out — this T-Wolves team could be deeper than anyone thought.

Other BBNBA notes

Jamal Murray added 13 points in his return campaign against the Lakers in a 110-99 win.
Anthony Davis‘ 22-point and 14-rebound double-double wasn’t enough as LA moves to 0-4.
PJ Washington and Julius Randle both had 17 points in the Hornets vs Knicks matchup.
Nick Richards cooled off but still had seven points, four rebounds, and two assists in Charlotte’s 134-131 OT loss.

Statistics from 10/26/22

Player	Score	PTS	FG (3PT)	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	MIN	+/-
Tyrese Maxey (PHI)	119-109 L @ TOR	31	12-21 (4-8)	5	6	2	1	4	43	-1
Keldon Johnson (SAS)	134-122 L @ MIN	27	9-20 (5-10)	4	3	0	0	3	33	-2
Anthony Davis (LAL)	110-99 L @ DEN	22	11-19 (0-1)	14	5	3	2	0	36	-22
Karl-Anthony Towns (MIN)	134-122 W vs. SAS	21	9-14 (3-5)	4	7	2	1	3	37	+5
Bam Adebayo (MIA)	119-98 W @ POR	18	6-11 (0-1)	8	3	1	0	3	28	+17
Julius Randle (NYK)	134-131 (OT) W vs. CHA	17	7-19 (0-2)	6	2	2	1	1	39	+6
PJ Washington (CHA)	134-131 (OT) L @ NYK	17	5-14 (4-8)	5	1	1	0	2	37	-1
Shaedon Sharpe (POR)	119-98 L vs. MIA	15	5-12 (2-5)	8	0	1	0	2	21	-9
Tyler Herro (MIA)	119-98 W @ POR	14	5-13 (3-8)	4	4	0	0	1	28	+10
Jamal Murray (DEN)	110-99 W vs. LAL	13	6-15 (1-7)	4	6	2	0	4	27	+17
Immanuel Quickley (NYK)	134-131 (OT) W vs. CHA	11	3-6 (2-3)	3	3	0	0	3	18	-5
Isaiah Jackson (IND)	124-109 L @ CHI	8	4-4	7	1	0	1	0	19	-4
Nick Richards (CHA)	134-131 (OT) L @ NYK	7	2-2	4	2	0	0	0	19	+12
Jarred Vanderbilt (UTA)	109-101 W vs. HOU	6	3-7 (0-1)	8	2	0	0	1	19	+7
Hamidou Diallo (DET)	118-113 L vs. ATL	4	2-8	1	1	1	0	1	15	+6
Kevin Knox (DET)	118-113 L vs. ATL	0	0-0	1	0	0	0	0	5	+3
Wenyen Gabriel (LAL)	110-99 L @ DEN	0	0-0	0	0	0	0	0	2	+7
Nerlens Noel (DET)	118-113 L vs. ATL	DNP	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
Tyty Washinton (HOU)	109-101 L @ UTA	DNP	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
Olivier Sarr (POR)	119-98 L vs. MIA	DNP	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–