The NBA released the All-Star starters for the 2026 Eastern and Western Conference All-Star teams on Monday. Among the Eastern Conference players selected was one very deserving Philadelphia 76ers star — Tyrese Maxey.
Maxey was voted as a starter alongside Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jaylen Brown, Jalen Brunson, and Cade Cunningham. This marks Maxey's second career All-Star game, his first as a starter. NBA All-Star starters are selected by a combination of votes from fans, current NBA players, and media. The fan vote accounts for 50% of the results, while the current players and media each account for 25%.
The honor is well deserved, as Maxey found a way to take his game to yet another level as the Sixers found themselves in desperate need of a bounce-back season. Over 38 games, Maxey is averaging 30.3 points (third in the NBA), 4.4 rebounds, 6.7 assists, 1.9 steals (fourth in the NBA), and 1.0 blocks—all career-highs—with shooting splits of nearly 50/40/90 on the season.
Each season, it seems Maxey finds another gear, and the assumption becomes, "Well, he can't possibly get any better than this," only for him to improve the following season. Maxey has been "too small," a "poor shooter," it's been said he "can't play defense," and that he can't "be the alpha for a winning team," and yet, here we are. The Sixers are 22-18, sixth in the East, just two games back of the third seed, and Tyrese Maxey has been named an All-Star starter en route to what will be his first All-NBA season if he continues anywhere near this pace.
At just 25 years of age, Maxey is just entering his prime. The Sixers struck gold selecting him with the 21st pick in the 2020 NBA Draft and haven't looked back since.
The Sixers weren't even supposed to possess the pick that became Maxey until a series of extremely fortunate events broke their way. Now, they have an apparent perennial All-Star candidate who can lead this team into the next era, and, if all goes as planned, to long-sought-after postseason success.
As always, thank you, Mike Muscala.
