Doc Rivers was more than 10 minutes late to Thursday’s pregame news conference, because he stopped to have a conversation with Tyrese Maxey in the Wells Fargo Center’s hallway. Later that night, Maxey settled into a spot behind the 76ers’ bench to watch his teammates play against Rivers’ Milwaukee Bucks.

PHILADELPHIA -- Milwaukee Bucks coach Doc Rivers knows a thing about Philadelphia 76ers stars Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey. He coached both of them for three seasons from 2020-2023 and saw Embiid win MVP and Maxey make a meteoric rise.