BOSTON — The many questions that faced Tyrese Maxey and the Philadelphia 76ers about how they can take the next step after being swept by the New York Knicks were quickly answered this summer. Now, the Sixers are entering 2026-27 season as one of the championship favorites after landing both LeBron James and Jaylen Brown.
Maxey and Joel Embiid will now get to suit up with two of the best players in the league alongside rising star VJ Edgecombe in what will be an interesting team to see work out the kinks on the court.
Maxey recently joined New Balance's elite high school basketball camp, the Beantown Elite Experience, in Boston, where the guard officially unveiled his new signature shoe — the Maxey V1 — and gave them out to kids. After spending days coaching the players both on and off the court, Maxey sat down exclusively with ClutchPoints to talk about what this new look Philadelphia 76ers team will look like.
“We haven't gotten on the court yet, so we'll see,” Maxey told ClutchPoints. “But as far as the chemistry off the court, guys are communicating, guys are having a good time doing it, guys are really pumping each other up, and guys are also willing to sacrifice. It's just what they've said. So when we step on the court, we have to kind of embody all those things that we've been talking about.
“Sacrificing, coming together as one, and going out there competing every single night. Those are the three things that we really have to focus on. It's going to be one day at a time. One day at a time and one step at a time. There's going to be some good days, there's going to be some bad days, but at the end of the day we always want to be stepping in the right direction to come playoff time.”
This summer, LeBron James made it clear he was going to prioritize himself, his happiness, and the ability to contend for an NBA Championship when it came to his free agency decision. James took well into July to decide where he was going to go, and ultimately chose the Sixers after they were able to flip Paul George for Jaylen Brown coming off an MVP-caliber season.
VJ Edgecombe hinted shortly after that Maxey, a Klutch Sports Group client like James and someone he works out with during the summer, knew about LeBron's free agency decision and kept it close to the vest.
Article Continues BelowVJ Edgecombe on whether he tried to pitch LeBron James to come to the Sixers 🗣
"I keep calling Tyrese [Maxey], and I was like, 'Are we getting Bron? Are we getting Bron?' And Tyrese is like, 'Bro, I don't know.' Like, 'I don't think so.' But he knew the whole time. But he ain't…
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) August 5, 2026
Maxey denies those claims, but did say he felt the 76ers had a legitimate chance to add LeBron James despite many ruling them out.
“I'm not going to say I knew and just didn't tell anyone, but I had multiple conversations with LeBron,” Maxey told ClutchPoints. “I work out with LeBron early in the morning, and that's just off of being cool with him. It's funny, he's like a big brother, like an OG to me, and for us to be teammates, it was funny because a kid asked me the other day, he looked at me and said, ‘are you and LeBron friends?' I thought about it. I leaned back and I said, ‘you know, I guess we are friends. He's the old, old, old guy, but he's like one of my old friends.' It's funny because we are teammates now, co-workers, but it's kind of like a big brother situation. It's going to be very cool and interesting dynamic.”
With both on the same team now, the buzz out of Philadelphia is that LeBron James will be playing more point guard and handling playmaking duties to help ease the on-ball workload of guys like Jaylen Brown, Tyrese Maxey, and LeBron James.
Media Day is just around the corner for the NBA, and it'll be the first chance to see James in a 76ers jersey alongside his new Philly teammates.
Stay tuned for a full-length exclusive interview with Philadelphia 76ers guard Tyrese Maxey dropping shortly on ClutchPoints.