Maxey, Harris Support Isaiah Joe’s Impressive Outing
Former Arkansas sharpshooter Isaiah Joe joined the Philadelphia 76ers through the 2020 NBA Draft. After being linked to the Sixers in the weeks leading up to the draft, Joe became one of Philadelphia’s two second-round picks, joining the team after Tyrese Maxey and right before Paul Reed.
Unfortunately, two seasons later, Joe is no longer donning a Sixers uniform like the other two that were selected then. Joe was facing an uphill battle going into year three. During the preseason, it was clear the sharpshooter was fighting for the final roster spot.
While many believed Isaiah Joe was in a two-man battle for the final spot with Charles Bassey, the Sixers made a shocking move by waiving both prospects after the preseason. Shortly after Joe parted ways with the Sixers, he landed with the Oklahoma City Thunder.
“That was a tough one for me because I really liked the kid,” said Doc Rivers discussing the release of Joe. “I really believe he’s an NBA player. He was just caught behind so many guys, so that was very difficult.”
Rivers and the Sixers were happy to see Joe land in Oklahoma City and hoped his new situation would allow the young sharpshooter to garner more opportunities to develop and showcase his skill set in the NBA.
While Joe had a slow start to his OKC run, averaging fewer than two minutes on the court through the Thunder’s first five games, the former Sixer picked up nearly ten minutes of playing time on Saturday night against the Dallas Mavericks and had a critical performance. Tobias Harris and Tyrese Maxey liked what they saw and celebrated the young guard’s success on Saturday.
“ELITE!!” Wrote Tyrese Maxey. “Yessir!” Said Tobias Harris.
In the nine minutes Joe spent on the court with the Thunder on Saturday, the young guard put up four shots, three of which came from beyond the arc. Joe was perfect from the field, drilling all of his attempts. In addition, he went to the free-throw line on two occasions and knocked down all four of his shots.
By the end of the night, Joe had 15 points. That marked just the fourth time Joe scored at least 15 points in a single outing. The third-year guard’s role in OKC remains unclear at this time. Perhaps, his big night in the six-point win over the Mavericks allows Joe an opportunity to pick up more playing time moving forward.
Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for All76ers, a Sports Illustrated channel. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.
