Inside Sixers: Tyrese Maxey’s positivity post-injury, why Danuel House Jr. wears 25 and more

As Tyrese Maxey grabbed a bag of popcorn and plopped into the seat in front of his locker at the Wells Fargo Center, his face still flashed his signature smile. Yet a glance down revealed the walking boot protecting the 76ers guard’s fractured left foot, an injury detected in an MRI exam earlier Saturday that could keep him out for up to a month.

For at least the next 10 minutes, a steady stream of teammates and staffers approached Maxey to check in and pass along their well wishes. Assistant coach Jamie Young followed head video coordinator Eli Kell-Abrams with a handshake. Skill development coach Spencer Rivers, who is particularly close to Maxey, took the seat to his right to chat.

“I didn’t die!” Maxey said at one point.

It was fitting that the Sixers’ Big Energy Chain — a token awarded to those who bring contagious spirit to the weight room — was already hanging in Maxey’s locker. The preamble to the Sixers’ first game without their promising third-year guard was a reminder of how Maxey’s enthusiasm permeates his team’s universe as much as his explosive scoring.

This is the same guy who, earlier in the week, slung a football with teammates De’Anthony Melton and James Harden while jogging across the two courts inside the Sixers’ practice facility. And who got into a playful-yet-impassioned argument with MVP contender Joel Embiid about whether he had fouled the big man while playing one-on-one.

» READ MORE: Tyrese Maxey’s injury is a big blow to the Sixers’ chemistry — and possible success

Maxey’s injury was the dominant story line of a week when, after a rare four days between games, the 8-8 Sixers split their home back-to-back with an impressive victory over the Milwaukee Bucks on Friday and a close loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves the following night.

Here are some more scenes that defined the week.

Upon spotting Jaden Springer at his locker, Sixers assistant Dan Burke said, “You’re a yo-yo, aren’t you?”

The comparison was appropriate. Springer has gotten quite used to the drive from Wilmington to Philly and/or Camden, splitting time with the Sixers and G League affiliate Delaware Blue Coats for the entirety of his two professional seasons. Those trips have been sometimes daily during this particular stretch, with the Sixers nearly finished playing eight out of nine games at home over the span of 22 days to begin November.

“It’s just always being ready,” Springer said. “You never know what could happen.”

Joining the Blue Coats allows the 20-year-old guard to get game action, so far averaging 15.7 points, 3 rebounds, 2.7 assists, and 2 steals over three contests. Stints with the Sixers, meanwhile, provide opportunities for Springer to work with the NBA coaches and be around teammates playing at the highest level. A strained quadriceps most recently brought the 2021 first-round draft pick back to Philly, where he can be evaluated and treated by the Sixers’ medical and training staff.

After spending the bulk of his rookie season with the Blue Coats, Springer said he is building on the foundation he established in Delaware. He believes he has improved his three-point shooting (4 of 10 in those three games), ballhandling, and ability to make reads on the fly.

Blue Coats staffers “are people that I know and that I can trust to coach me up and be there to help me out throughout the process,” Springer said. “… I know the work I put in every day, so all I can keep doing is keep getting better and, whenever my name is called or my time comes, I can be ready.”

Springer said he usually receives a “pretty good heads-up” on how his schedule will toggle between the Sixers and Blue Coats. Yet injuries and other unforeseen circumstances can trigger a recall with little notice. His craziest example occurred last season, when he was with the Blue Coats for a game in Greensboro, N.C., and the next morning he received a call that he had 20 minutes to leave for a flight to join the Sixers in Chicago.

» READ MORE: Shorthanded Sixers’ rally comes up short in 112-109 loss to Minnesota Timberwolves

He thinks.

“I’m not sure what city I went to,” Springer conceded.

That drive back and forth to Wilmington, however? He’s got that memorized, down to the Jersey gas station where he gets his tank filled each time.

Giannis Antetokounmpo’s free-throw woes on Friday caused viral postgame fireworks, featuring Sixers reserve big man Montrezl Harrell snatching the basketball and a tumbling ladder.

Those misfires also naturally created a rowdy in-the-moment environment. Fans went wild when Antetokounmpo went 0-for-2 on three separate occasions in the second half — not just because of the Greek Freak’s stature or that they helped the Sixers pull off a marquee victory, but because they awarded everybody in attendance 12 free chicken nuggets from Chick-fil-A as part of the new “Bricken for Chicken” promotion.

P.J. Tucker was among those egging on the crowd as Antetokounmpo’s shots clanged off the rim. When informed of the quest for nuggets — and that the promotion used to be the popular “Frosty Freeze Out” from Wendy’s — the veteran forward in his first season with the Sixers responded with: “Frosty’s? That’s weird.”

From across the locker room, that exchange prompted wing Matisse Thybulle to recall a 2019 game against the Washington Wizards, when Isaiah Thomas went into the stands to confront a fan who had hollered expletives at him after he missed his first free throw but made the second to deny the crowd the free frozen treat.

“His response was, ‘I’m sorry. I just wanted a Frosty,’” Thomas said after that game.

When House reestablished himself in the NBA with the Utah Jazz last season, he wore No. 25. He decided to keep it after signing this past summer with the Sixers — and had no hesitation about donning the same digits that the reviled Ben Simmons last wore for the team.

“I’ve been making threes,” House said. “There’s no disrespect, too. I don’t believe in none of that.”

House, though, is another Sixer with an attachment to No. 4, which is retired by the organization in honor of Hall of Famer Dolph Schayes.

That’s the number he wore with the Washington Wizards and Houston Rockets as a nod to his home city of Houston’s historic Fourth Ward, where recently freed slaves lived in Freedman’s Town following the Civil War. Four was also House’s late grandmother’s favorite number.

Other Sixers who previously wore No. 4 include Thybulle, who donned it since childhood because it was his late mother’s favorite number, and Paul Reed, who wore it in college. With the Sixers, Thybulle chose 22 because two plus two and two times two both equal four. Reed doubled up and chose 44.

It took almost two years but Ben Simmons will soon play at the Wells Fargo Center. This time, however, Simmons will be positioned alongside the Brooklyn Nets on Nov. 22 when they face the Sixers. The Inquirer’s Gina Mizell and Keith Pompey will broadcast live from the marquee game, discussing Simmons’ return and the Sixers’ injury issues.