Tyreese Maxey’s game-saving block overshadows Edgecombe

ByNBAUSA



Tyrese McKay he built his NBA reputation as one of the league’s most electric offensive guards, a scorer with All-Star brilliance and growing All-NBA credentials. But on Thursday night, his defense made the headlines.

With Philadelphia 76ers clinging to a 99-98 lead with the final seconds ticking away at Xfinity Mobile Arena, Golden State Warriors guard De’Anthony Melton appeared to have a clear path to winning the game.

What happened next was a blur: Maxey exploded from the opposite end of the court, sprinting at full speed before launching himself into the air to block a shot at the buzzer, denying both the attempt and Philadelphia’s near-catastrophic collapse.

The play immediately became one of the defining defensive moments of the young season.

Maxey’s teammates stormed the floor, celebrating the game-saving stop more dramatically than the previous offensive possession that had put them ahead.

At that point, a clutch finish at the rim by rookie VJ Edgecombe became almost an afterthought. Even Joel Embiid is no stranger to late-game heroics or monster blocks, he admitted Maxie’s pursuit was wiped out everything else from his mind.

“The block was unbelievable,” Embiid said afterward. “I almost forgot where we actually made the game-winning layup. I had to ask afterwards. I was like, ‘Wait, who made the game-winning layup?’ That’s how good the block was.”

Maxie later joked about that adrenaline and the fact that Melton is a close friend and a former teammate added fuel to the game.

The win improved the Sixers’ record and reinforced a growing theme: Maxey’s game is evolving beyond burst and speed.

He’s becoming a two-way closer, the kind of quarterback that contending teams rely on when it matters most.

Edgecombe may have hit the deciding basket, but Maxie made sure it counted. And in the process, he delivered a highlight reel that even his MVP teammate couldn’t stop replaying in his head.





2025-12-05 15:18:00

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