Tyrese Maxey on Rumored Joel Embiid Comments, 76ers Meeting: 'There Was a Lot Said'

Tyrese Maxey told reporters "there was a lot said" in the Philadelphia 76ers locker room after Monday's 106-89 road loss to the Miami Heat.

ESPN's Shams Charania reported on Tuesday that Maxey called out fellow 76ers star Joel Embiid for being late to team activities after the Sixers' record dropped to 2-11 with the loss.

"I wanted to speak up," Maxey said, per The Athletic's Tony Jones. "I felt the need to do that because I wanted to share that we are better than what we have shown on the floor. There was a lot said, but it is what it is. We said what we had to say and we have to figure out a way to move on to the rest of the season. Everyone understands what's at stake. Everyone is feeling the hurt."

Maxey continued: "When they hit us, we were supposed to hit back. It was supposed to be a fight out there, but it wasn't. We kind of laid down in Miami, and that's something that we can't do anymore."

Maxey has missed six games for the Sixers with a strained right hamstring and is listed as questionable ahead of Wednesday night's road game against the Memphis Grizzlies.

Embiid was meanwhile not listed on Wednesday's injury report after missing 10 of the first 11 games of the season due to knee injury management and a suspension.

He was listed as "doubtful" due to illness ahead of Monday's game but ended up logging more than 31 minutes on the court in the loss to the Heat, shooting 5-of-11 from the field for 11 points, eight rebounds and five assists.

According to Charania, Embiid "was not seen by most teammates and coaches throughout the day before appearing for warmups and playing in the game."

Charania further wrote about the Sixers' meeting after the loss:

Players told 76ers coach Nick Nurse they want to be coached harder, and coaches in turn said they want players to practice with purpose and attention to detail.

Embiid accepted the messages sent in the meeting, sources said, but he stated that he is sometimes confused about what the 76ers are attempting to execute on the court.

Charania added: "Maxey is highly regarded as a young leader by many in the organization and those around the team were not surprised that he spoke up Monday."

The Sixers climbed out to an early lead over the Heat but were unable to maintain the advantage as the ball control problems that have plagued the team so far this season continued.

Philadelphia entered the third quarter leading by three points and exited trailing by 16 amid turnover issues and defensive struggles. That late slump has been a pattern for the 76ers, who through 13 games rank 27th in the league with a third-quarter net rating of minus-19.4.

Maxey will hope the team meeting will spark an improvement for the second-half Sixers, although injuries will continue to limit the team going forward. Maxey will be on a minutes restriction if he is available against the Grizzlies, per Jones, and Kyle Lowry is set to miss the game with a right hip strain.