76ers star Tyrese Maxey joked that he will start taking UFC lessons after Hornets rookie Brandon Miller delivered a brutal elbow to his face during Saturday night’s game

Tyrese Maxey joked he will take UFC lessons after taking an elbow to the face (
Image: Dustin Satloff/Getty Images)

Philadelphia 76ers guard Tyrese Maxey plans on dipping his toes into a new sport following a bloody on-court incident.

During the Sixers’ 109-98 win over the Charlotte Hornets on Saturday night, Maxey took a brutal blow to the face from Brandon Miller. As the former played tight defense on the latter in the corner, the Hornets rookie elbowed Maxey in the nose while trying to get by.

Upon reviewing the play, officials ruled that Miller’s foul was a Flagrant 2, thus ejecting him from the game. Maxey, meanwhile, appeared on the Jumbotron, hyping up the home crowd with hilarious facial expressions as two pieces of gauze stuck out of his bloody nose.

“I got hit and I was like, ‘Oh, let me get up. I don’t want to go through that again,’” Maxey said in reference to the concussion protocol he cleared last weekend after missing four straight games. “But I’m all right. I tell everybody I’m a soldier, so it is what it is. I’m going to take UFC lessons, though.”

Maxey quickly confirmed he was joking, insisting there was no bad blood between him and Miller. “I know Brandon Miller didn’t mean to do that on purpose,” Maxey said. “So the jokes I make, it’s not personal. I’m just having a little fun. We have a great job. We’re blessed to wake up every single morning and do what we love to do.

“And I’m just a happy person. Winning makes me happy and playing basketball really makes me happy. It was a cool moment and I just tried to make some fun out of it.” 76ers head coach Nick Nurse commended Maxey for displaying the toughness and mental fortitude to remain in the game after the hit.

“Blood was coming down there pretty good and he hung in there, man. Happens in this game,” Nurse said. “That was good to see him stick in there, make the plays and play most of the game.”

Behind Maxey’s game-high 30 points, the 76ers got an important win in the absence of Joel Embiid, who’s been sidelined with a left lateral meniscus injury for Philadelphia’s last 21 contests. The 23-year-old has been integral in keeping the team afloat without their best player, averaging 26.9 points, 5.1 assists and 4.0 rebounds during Embiid’s missed time.

Tyrese Maxey scored a game-high 30 points against the Hornets (
Image:
Rich Schultz/Getty Images)
“Just being aggressive and finding ways to get my teammates going as well,” Maxey said of his increased role. “I’ve got to do both. I’ve got to be able to keep [instilling] confidence in my teammates and telling them to keep shooting those shots they need to shoot. And just getting guys in the right spots and being aggressive, and sustaining that aggressiveness all four quarters.

“That’s what we need. There’s been a few times where in the fourth quarter I wasn’t able to close the game out. … So I’ve got to find ways to be the best I can be all 48 minutes.”