What motivates Tyrese Maxey for this season? The Sixers’ dismal 2024-25 campaign.

It’s a little tricky to contextualize how dismal the 76ers were last season when you factor in injuries and the fact that they sacrificed wins for a lottery pick.

Were they bad because the Big Three of Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey, and Paul George played only 15 games together combined? And how much did tanking during the final two months of the season have to do with finishing with the NBA’s fifth-worst record at 24-58?

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Regardless of the reason, Maxey is determined to show the Sixers are much better than they’ve appeared.

“I’m not going to lie to you, this motivated me to levels that I haven’t [reached before],” he said of last season. “I’ve been motivated all my life. But that motivated me to a level that I can’t even explain, honestly. I mean, I won at every stage of my career on winning teams.

“So, not being on a winning team last year definitely put me in a mindset that that’s what we need to do. And I’m sure we are going to go out there and do that.”

By tanking, the Sixers accomplished their goal of getting a top-five pick in June’s NBA draft. They selected combo guard VJ Edgecombe third out of Baylor. However, the Sixers are coming off arguably the most disappointing season in the franchise’s 76-year history while losing 31 of their final 36 games. It also ended their string of seven consecutive postseason appearances.

Maxey was ruled out for the remainder of the season on April 9, even though he hadn’t played since March 3 because of various ailments.

The 6-foot-2 point guard averaged career highs of 26.3 points and 1.8 steals to go with 6.1 assists. However, he also averaged a career-high 2.4 turnovers while shooting a career-worst 43.7% from the field.

After carrying the Sixers while Embiid and George struggled with injuries, the 2024 All-Star and winner of the NBA Most Improved Player award missed the final 22 games of the season. He missed 30 games altogether.

“My summer has been great,” Maxey said Saturday. “It’s been long, sadly, but it’s been great. It’s been amazing. It’s been much needed. I think we needed this mental break. And I think we are going to come back stronger from it.”

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As in the past, the 24-year-old is partaking in multiple daily workouts this summer. But he has incorporated more into his offseason workout plan.

“I’ve done something new because I had more time,” Maxey said. ”I did hot Pilates stuff. I did some hot yoga stuff. … I feel terrific. I feel lean. So this year was really easy for me, because last year I had to wait [to take care of his contract extension] before I could actually start working out. This time, I got to hit the ground running. I feel great, body feels great, and I can’t wait to start the season.”

Maxey has also incorporated a lot of film study into his offseason routine.

“A lot of study that I can do [for going] off-ball in a lot of circumstances,” he said, “with Joel, without Joel; with Paul, without Paul; with Jared [McCain], without Jared.

“My biggest thing is I want to find ways to play off everybody and still play like the way I play.”

Maxey said he also has had conversations with coach Nick Nurse and others about how the team can play faster and more together.

“How can we get more guys involved and really try to be a more diverse attack?” he said. “And I think we are going to find a way to do that.”