Philadelphia 76ers guard Tyrese Maxey has been recognized as a "near-miss" contender for the Most Valuable Player award.
The Philadelphia 76ers (31-26) are lucky Tyrese Maxey is having a career year, or else they'd likely be in a much worse position with 25 games remaining in the regular season.
Philadelphia is barely holding onto the No. 6 seed in the Eastern Conference with the Orlando Magic and Miami Heat trailing close behind.
With Embiid appearing in just 31 games so far this season and Paul George being suspended, Maxey has been called upon to play superhero for a large portion of the 2025-2026 campaign. He has delivered, averaging 29.0 points, 6.7 assists, 4.1 rebounds, and 2.0 steals on 46.8% shooting and 37.7% shooting from three-point range in 55 games played.
Because of this, Bleacher Report recognized Maxey as a "near-miss" contender for the Most Valuable Player award this season.
"The Sixers finding relative stability this season—while still highwire-acting around availability issues with Joel Embiid and Paul George—should give Maxey a decent boost from the voting populace," B/R's Zach Buckley wrote. "Still, his overall team success won't measure up with the top candidates, and he doesn't quite have the individual numbers to compensate."
Philadelphia 76ers Guard Tyrese Maxey. © Stephen Lew-Imagn ImagesThe other "near-miss" candidates for MVP Bleacher Report listed are Jalen Brunson, Anthony Edwards, Kawhi Leonard, and Donovan Mitchell.
Maxey certainly deserves to be in the conversation alongside these established superstars, as he was named an All-Star starter for the first time in his career. At age 25, he is also projected to be named to an All-NBA Team for the first time.
The reality is a Maxey-led team won't find serious success in the postseason, as the 76ers need Joel Embiid healthy to have a serious shot in the Eastern Conference. Still, he deserves a ton of credit for what he's done this season to keep Philadelphia afloat with Embiid and George missing significant time.
While Maxey almost definitely won't be hoisting this prestigious hardware at season's end, to hear his name in those conversations is undoubtedly a testament to his stellar play this season.
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