The Philadelphia 76ers have not had the kind of season they hoped for when the year began. On Saturday night, their struggles continued as they suffered their 29th loss of the season. They were defeated by the Atlanta Hawks (125–116).
However, the defeat wasn’t the only worrying moment of the night for Philadelphia fans as star guard Tyrese Maxey was forced to leave the game late after suffering a hand injury.
Tyrese Maxey Suffered an Injury on Friday Night
The incident happened in the final seconds of the game, with just 16 seconds remaining on the clock. At that point, the outcome was nearly decided, but both teams were still competing for the ball during the closing possession.
The play began when Hawks guard CJ McCollum had the ball near the perimeter. As Philadelphia defenders tried to apply pressure, McCollum quickly moved the ball and passed it to teammate Onyeka Okongwu. As the pass traveled toward Okongwu, Maxey read the play well and jumped into the passing lane in an attempt to intercept the ball.
Maxey managed to get a hand on the pass and briefly controlled it, but at the same moment, his teammate Adem Bona was also rushing toward the same area with the same idea. Unfortunately, both players collided while trying to make the defensive play.
Doesn’t get much worse than this for the Sixers: Tyrese Maxey exits the loss early after immediately grabbing his right hand in pain after this collision with Adem Bona.
Hard to see exactly what happened in the collision, but it did not look good based on Maxey’s reaction. pic.twitter.com/uRkU6q3bLC
— Erin Grugan (@eringrugan) March 8, 2026
Maxey immediately went down to the floor. Even though the ball eventually bounced toward another 76ers player who attempted to push the play forward and score, the shot did not go in.
Before that moment, Maxey had actually been playing a good game. The 76ers guard finished with 31 points on 12-of-22 shooting from the field. He also made three of his seven attempts from beyond the arc and converted all four of his free throws.
Along with his scoring, Maxey added five assists, four steals, and two rebounds while logging 38 minutes on the court. He has now scored 30 or more points in four of his last seven games.
The game itself actually started well for Philadelphia. The Sixers came out strong in the first quarter and built a 10-point lead. They then entered halftime with a seven-point advantage. However, things began to change after the break. The Hawks found their rhythm offensively in the second half and slowly chipped away at the lead.
Atlanta ended up putting together a huge second half. They scored a total of 59 points. The Sixers struggled to match that pace and ultimately lost the game.
Maxey’s injury now creates another major concern for Philadelphia moving forward. Even though the Sixers have not performed as expected, they still have a realistic chance of fighting for a spot in the Play-In Tournament if they can finish the season strong.
If Maxey ends up missing games because of the hand injury, other guards will have to take on bigger roles. Players like Cameron Payne and Quentin Grimes could see more minutes and additional responsibility in the backcourt.
