Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe are already staring down 76ers history

As the 2025-26 NBA season enters its third week, the Philadelphia 76ers have a chance to make history. They opened the season 5-1, boasting the second-best offensive rating (123) in the NBA. This early success is headed by sixth-year point guard Tyrese Maxey and rookie VJ Edgecombe, the third overall pick of the 2025 Draft.

It’s been 57 years since the NBA saw the same team produce both the MVP and Rookie of the Year (ROTY), when Wes Unseld did it in the 1968-69 season for the Baltimore Bullets. This rare feat only happened three other times in NBA history (1963-1964, 1959-1960, and 1956-1957).

Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe are the hottest backcourt in the league, and the numbers back it up.

For the week of Oct. 27 to Nov. 2, Maxey was named the Eastern Conference Player of the Week, and his numbers make it obvious why. He ranks second in the NBA, scoring 33.7 points per game, barely trailing Giannis Antetokounmpo (34). He’s also tied for fifth in assists per game (9.0) beside James Harden and sits fourth in efficiency rating (36.7).

He’s been lethal from behind the arc with 26 three-pointers made on the season. This is only four shy of Stephen Curry’s league-leading 30 threes on the year. Maxey also leads the league in points per game with 25, showing not only his shooting prowess but also his efficiency in creating offense.

When compared to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, 2024-25 MVP and current Western Conference Player of the Week, his case becomes stronger. Both players average around the same points per game (33.7 to 33.6), but Maxey is shooting a blistering 46.4% from behind the arc compared to SGA’s 26.8%. While SGA leads in field goal percentage (52.6% compared to 46.4%), Maxey’s playmaking ability creates separation, dishing 9.0 assists per game compared to SGA’s 5.9.

Tyrese Maxey’s start to the season is significantly ahead of SGA’s start to his MVP year. Through October, SGA averaged 26 points per game, 6 assists per game, 27.3% from three, and 42.7% from the field, lower than Maxey’s stats for his first two weeks of October.

Maxey’s early-season production isn’t just impressive, it’s historic. He’s only the second player to score 150+ points and 30+ assists throughout the first four games of the season, joining Russell Westbrook, who did it in 2016-17.

The only concern, durability. Sites continue to snub him from being top of the MVP race for this reason. He currently leads the league with 42.5 minutes played per game, and last season, despite leading in minutes (37.7), he was limited to 52 games due to injury.

Fatigue and load management could be the only things standing between him and a legit MVP run. But the addition of Jared McCain back to the court from injury will provide needed relief for the Sixers’ backcourt rotation, allowing Maxey’s minutes to get dialed back.

While Maxey is spearheading an MVP campaign, rookie VJ Edgecombe is leading the charge to win ROTY. He leads all rookies in points per game with 20.3, a five-point gap over second-place Cedric Coward (15.3). He tops rookies in efficiency rating (21.8) and assists (5.0 per game), while tying for the most steals (1.5) with Jeremiah Fears. On the glass, he ranks third among rookies with 5.0 rebounds per game, again matching Coward.

For comparison, last year’s ROTY, Stephon Castle from the San Antonio Spurs, averaged (per game) 14.7 points, 0.9 steals, 4.1 assists, and 3.7 rebounds. All being lower than Edgecombe’s current marks.

Edgecombe made his statement from the start. His 34-point debut was the most points scored by an NBA rookie in their first NBA game in 66 years. Not to mention his 14 points in the first quarter, which broke Lebron James’ previous record of 12 points, set in 2003.

Edgecombe is currently playing the second-most minutes per game overall in the league (38.9), an impressive workload for a rookie. Many may question if a first-year player can sustain that level of play, but his background suggests he can. At Baylor, he averaged 32.7 minutes per game, and although the NBA is at an extremely high level, this shows his endurance needed for a high-level role.

The parallels are hard to ignore. A young ascending guard heading an elite offense, with an elite rookie outperforming his class. If Maxey continues his MVP pace and Edgecombe maintains his rookie dominance, the Sixers could do what no team has done since 1969: produce an MVP and ROTY in the same season.

It’s still early, with 82 games in a season, the NBA is a marathon, not a sprint. But if they keep up their pace together, the city won’t only be winning awards, but celebrating a new era of brotherly love on the hardwood.

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