Monday night was a slow Philly sports night with the Phillies taking the day off, but there was some non-professional action going on over at LaSalle University that caught the attention of some Sixers fans. If you’re unfamiliar with The Rumph Classic, you might be new to the basketball scene in Philadelphia. The Rumph is a local basketball tournament that features amateur as well as NBA players, and this past iteration was the 17th year of Philly hoop heads getting their fill of top level basketball in the middle of the summer. Well, last night was the championship of the tournament, and one of the teams got a huge boost for the big game. Team EOF, who already had Philly native and current Los Angeles Clipper Marcus Morris on the roster, added current Sixers Tyrese Maxey and Isaiah Joe for the championship game. Maxey, who was a breakout star for Philly this past season, did not disappoint.
From the get go, Maxey showed in the game why he was an exceptional NBA player last year in just his 2nd year in the league, pouring in basket after basket for Team EOF. Just check out the Rumph Classic’s Twitter feed if you want an idea of the type of night that Maxey had:
👀 @TyreseMaxey (34p), @zai_joe1 (16p) & @MookMorris2 (29p | MVP) led FOE to the @RumphClassic title Monday night! pic.twitter.com/N6Kp51nz5U
— NBA (@NBA) August 9, 2022
Maxey ended up finishing the night with a game high 34 points for Team FOE, and also contributed 10 rebounds on the way to a 117-111 championship win. It was a vintage performance, reminiscent of what the young guard does nightly on an NBA floor. Now, even though the Rumph Classic is high level basketball, it’s not exactly NBA playoff level competition. Does this mean that Tyrese Maxey is going to be even better this season for the Sixers? Not necessarily. But there is something to be said about the effect a performance like this in a local classic tournament can have on a fan base (not that anyone needed more of a reason to like Maxey). It’s not a guarantee of success, but another instance of growth in the prestige of a young star in Philadelphia. Sixers fans hope that the Rumph Championship is not the only championship that Maxey has on his resume after this season.