NBA: 5 young players who have surprised everyone this season

5 young NBA players that have surprised everyone this year: Tyrese Maxey

In the absence of Ben Simmons, whose future in Philadelphia still remains unclear, Tyrese Maxey has stepped into the starting lineup and has shined in the early stages of the season.

Maxey is averaging over 35 minutes per game this season, up by more than 20 compared with last season, and has been trusted by head coach Doc Rivers in a big offensive role. He is averaging 17.1 points per game and has almost doubled the number of shots he is taking per game.

He is doing all of this while remaining incredibly efficient, too. Maxey is making more than 50 percent of his attempts and 38.1 percent of his threes, an increase from 30.1 percent last season. This is all the more impressive considering he is taking almost double the number of shots.

Last season, Maxey did not look like a player who was ready for a starting role on a team hoping to challenge in the postseason, but his diverse shot creation skills and efficiency making them has made the absence of Simmons a lot less impactful than it otherwise could have been.

It has been a surprise to see just how well Maxey has stepped into his new role this early on in his career after being selected 21st overall in last year’s draft. It will be a challenge to keep this level of efficiency and scoring up, but so far, the suggestion is that he will vastly outperform the spot he was selected in the draft.