Sixers' Tyrese Maxey highlights how 'positive' Joel Embiid remains a vocal leader despite extended absence

Explosive guard Tyrese Maxey has been carrying the load for the Philadelphia 76ers since Joel Embiid went down with the injury. Seeing the reigning league MVP keeping his optimism despite his current injury gives the former Kentucky Wildcat something to be happy about.

In an exclusive interview with Sportskeeda's Mark Medina, Maxey said that Embiid does not mind his knee injury and remains as happy as ever.

“Joel has been great. He’s always happy. He’s a good dude. He’s always around and with us on the court," said Maxey. He always wants to be around and help us. He’s always sending us texts and trying to motivate us. He’s always positive. We appreciate him for that.”

Embiid has been sidelined for quite a while after undergoing surgery to repair his left meniscus. The center has already been out for 23 games, which means the former MVP contender has been disqualified from winning any individual award due to the new rule set by the NBA on the number of games played for eligibility.

However, Sixers head coach Nick Nurse said that Joel Embiid has been progressing well in his workouts and is present in the on-court rehabilitation sessions almost every day.

NBC Sports Philadelphia’s John Clark also reported that Embiid could be re-evaluated in 2-3 weeks in hopes of reactivating in time for the Sixers’ last dash for a better postseason seed.

Tyrese Maxey on becoming new marked man for Sixers

Tyrese Maxey has emerged as the new key offensive option for the Philadelphia 76ers, especially when James Harden left for eventually the LA Clippers, all the more now with Joel Embiid taking a break from action.

According to Maxey, though, the opposing teams now respect his game, especially since he became an NBA All-Star this season and some box-and-1 defensive schemes have already been devised for him.

“As of late, defenses have been doing a lot of different things. They’re trapping. They’re denying. I’ve seen them do box-and-1," said Maxey in an exclusive interview with Medina. "I’ve seen everything this year. So I’m trying to watch other guys to see how they’ve handled it and then put it into my own game.”

“When Joel went out, at the beginning of the game, whether I scored or not, they were already in box-and-1 or trapping me," Maxey added.

The Phoenix Suns were successful in containing Maxey in their game on Wednesday night, holding him to just six points on 3-for-13 shooting after three straight 30-point blasts.

The Philadelphia 76ers will face the LA Lakers on Friday night, and expect the Lakers’ guards to pressure Tyrese Maxey more to keep him from scoring in bunches.