BBNBA: Tyrese Maxey's 34 points lift 76ers past Raptors

Go ahead and get those “Tyrese Maxey for Most Improved Player” campaigns rolling, something special is brewing in Philadelphia.

During Saturday’s slate of NBA games, Maxey dropped 34 points in a 114-107 win over the Toronto Raptors, giving the Philadelphia 76ers its first win of the 2023-24 season. Maxey’s 34 points were tied with teammate Joel Embiid, the league’s reigning MVP, for the game-high as that duo carried Philly from start to finish. Kelly Oubre Jr. was the next closest Sixer in scoring with 18 points. A 15-2 run to start the second half pushed Philly ahead for good.

Without James Harden, who has not played in either of the 76ers’ first two games, Maxey has assumed the role of go-to backcourt scorer. The former Kentucky Wildcat shot 12-20 on the night and was an ultra-efficient 7-9 from three-point range. He also chipped in six rebounds and seven assists with just one turnover in 40 minutes played.

“It seemed like he had 30 points every time we played them when I was coaching against him, so it’s nice to see him continue that with me around,” 76ers head coach Nick Nurse, who coached the Raptors from 2018-23, said of Maxey. “He’s really amazing.”

It’s only been two games, but Maxey is off to a terrific start to his fourth NBA season. He poured in 31 points, four rebounds, and eight assists during the 76ers’ one-point Opening Night loss to the Milwaukee Bucks a few days ago. Maxey doesn’t turn 23 years old until next week.

Wolves down Heat despite KAT’s bad shooting night

Karl-Anthony Towns didn’t have a great game by his standards, finishing with just 12 points and 10 rebounds on 5-12 shooting in 31 minutes played, but his teammates picked up the slack to lead the Minnesota Timberwolves past the Miami Heat 106-90. In what was Minnesota’s home opener, the Wolves were powered by 25 points from big man Naz Reid, who played more in the fourth quarter than Towns and fellow seven-footer Rudy Gobert did combined.

Although Towns didn’t make much of an impact on offense, his 10 rebounds (plus Gobert’s 14) helped Minnesota dominate the rebounding battle 58-38. The Timberwolves move to 1-1 on the young season with the win.

Meanwhile, for the Miami Heat, Tyler Herro led his squad in scoring with 22 points in just under 40 minutes. Unfortunately, he needed 23 shots to reach those 22 points, but he still managed to chip in five rebounds and four assists for the cause. Teammate Bam Adebayo wasn’t too far behind with 19 points on 7-14 shooting in nearly 33 minutes but with only two rebounds and three turnovers. Herro and Adebayo were actually the only two Heat players with at least nine points. Miami was without All-Star Jimmy Butler due to rest.

Other BBNBA notes

• Julius Randle, Immanuel Quickley, and the New York Knicks will look to forget everything about last night’s 96-87 loss to the New Orleans Pelicans. While Randle recorded a 10-point, 12-rebound double-double, it came on 4-15 overall shooting (0-5 from deep) and with eight turnovers. Quickley wasn’t much better with 10 points on 4-9 shooting in 19 minutes off the bench. The Knicks shot just 36.7 percent as a team and were a terrible 7-37 from distance.
• Devin Booker was held out for the second straight game due to a minor ankle injury. Despite missing Booker and fellow All-Star Bradley Beal, the Phoenix Suns still came away with the 126-104 win over the Utah Jazz as Suns’ wing Kevin Durant went for 26 points.

BBNBA statistics 10/28/29

Player	Score	PTS	FG (3PT)	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	+/-	MIN
Tyrese Maxey (PHI)	114-107 W @ TOR	34	12-20 (7-9)	6	7	0	0	1	10	40
Tyler Herro (MIA)	106-90 L @ MIN	22	8-23 (4-10)	5	4	0	0	0	-16	39
Bam Adebayo (MIA)	106-90 L @ MIN	19	7-14 (0-1)	3	2	0	0	4	-10	33
Karl-Anthony Towns (MIN)	106-90 W vs. MIA	12	5-12 (1-4)	10	2	1	0	1	6	31
Julius Randle (NYK)	96-87 L @ NOP	10	4-15 (0-5)	12	4	0	0	8	-11	33
Immauel Quickley (NYK)	96-87 L @ NOP	10	4-9 (0-3)	1	1	0	0	2	-12	19
Oscar Tshiebwe (IND)	125-113 W @ CLE	DNP-Not With Team	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Johnny Juzang (UTA)	104-126 L @ PHX	DNP-Not With Team	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Isaiah Jackson (IND)	125-113 W @ CLE	DNP-CD	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Devin Booker (PHX)	126-104 W vs. UTA	DNP-Ankle	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—

Today in the NBA

• 3:30: Nuggets (Murray) @ Thunder (Gilgeous-Alexander, Sarr, Wallace)
• 7:00: Hawks @ Bucks (Livingtonston, Washington)
• 7:00: Warriors @ Rockets
• 7:30: Trail Blazers (Sharpe) @ 76ers (Maxey)
• 9:00: Lakers (Davis, Vanderbilt: out) @ Kings (Fox, Lyles, Monk)
• 9:00 (NBA TV) Spurs (Johnson) @ Clippers (Boston: out)