Tyrese Maxey had High Praise for Kyle Lowry Following Sixers Debut

On Thursday night, the Philadelphia 76ers got some reinforcements in the form of a new face. After signing with the team following his buyout from the Charlotte Hornets, Kyle Lowry made his debut against the New York Knicks. 

Things looked dicey for Lowry in the first half after he was bloodied by an elbow from Jericho Sims. However, following some stitches, the former All-Star returned and put together a solid first round. 

Lowry logged 25 minutes in the loss to the Knicks and finished with a stat line of 11 points, four rebounds, and five assists. Among those to speak on his performance postgame was first-time All-Star Tyrese Maxey. He was most impressed by Lowry's vocal leadership on both ends of the floor. 

"He was big-time tonight. Not just on the court but the communication in every single huddle. There were times where I was trying to run a different play and he’s like ‘No we’re running this play, you’re going to be right here with the ball, do this.’ And I’m like alright cool," Maxey said. "What am I supposed to say? He’s a seven, eight-time All-Star. He’s a champion. I think it was great, honestly. And defensively he did a great job of just communicating, telling guys where to go. We need that. We need that leadership and it’s going to be good for us."

While Lowry will likely spend most of his time as Maxey's backup, the two guards did share the floor together at times against the Knicks. Nick Nurse like what he saw in those minutes, opening up the door for him to continue experimenting with the combination.

"It was good. One thing, Kyle does a lot of little things that are unique, especially for his position. He’s obviously a really good screener. He was freeing up Tyrese quite a bit and some of that stuff. He’s a good organizer. He was getting some things organized that were obviously getting us some buckets in the second half." 

The Sixers are back in action Friday against the Cavaliers, but Lowry is out as he continues his reconditioning process.