Tyrese Maxey Says James Harden 'Sacrificed' for 'Betterment of the Team' with 76ers

Tyrese Maxey praised James Harden's unselfishness during their shared tenure on the Philadelphia 76ers from 2022-23.

"The biggest thing I learned is—I know (James Harden), and I know people aren’t going to say he sacrificed, but he sacrificed," Maxey said during an appearance on The Deep 3 podcast (h/t HoopsHype). "He gave up some of himself for the team, for the betterment of the team. He was able to get Joel a lot of easy shots. He got me a lot of easy shots. But it was all about trust. From day one when he came in, the first thing he said to me was, 'Listen, don’t think you’re not going to get the ball. Don’t think you’re not about to still be aggressive and keep building your game.' His first instinct was always, whether we scored or didn’t, he was going to pitch it ahead to me—let me score in transition, play that one-on-one game, shoot—whatever the case may be. Then I’d get it back, and it would just flow from there."

Harden was acquired by the 76ers in a Feb. 2022 trade with the Brooklyn Nets and immediately thrived alongside Maxey and Joel Embiid despite operating in a reduced scoring role.

While Harden still ranked No. 2 in the NBA in average time of possession during the 2022-23 season, his first full year with Philadelphia, his shooting frequency decreased.

He averaged just 14.3 field-goal attempts per game as a member of the 76ers after recording 16.3 shots per game with the Nets before the deal. Harden set up his teammates instead, averaging a league-leading 10.7 assists on a nightly basis during his 2022-23 campaign.

Maxey also saw his individual production increase, recording 18.7 points per game across the two seasons he spent with Harden after scoring 8.0 points per game as a rookie in the year prior to the former MVP's arrival.

Harden was eventually dealt to the Los Angeles Clippers in Oct. 2023 after requesting a trade, but Maxey is still appreciative of the time they spent sharing the court.