The Philadelphia 76ers have experienced a roller coaster of emotions over the past few weeks. It wasn’t long ago that the team was celebrating a remarkable comeback from a 3-1 series deficit against the Boston Celtics, but the excitement was short-lived, as the Sixers were quickly swept out of the playoffs in the second round by the New York Knicks.
In the wake of this postseason exit, the 76ers decided to fire general manager Daryl Morey, with former Golden State Warriors general manager Bob Myers leading the search for Morey’s replacement. When looking back on Morey’s stint with Philly, it’s clear he made some misguided decisions, but Myers refused to dogpile on him in the wake of this move.
Bob Myers Defends Daryl Morey After 76ers’ Firing
That was a few months ago. Right now, we have the 22nd pick, our job is to get that right. We have 3 second-round picks from it. We should be graded on the ultimate result of transactions like that.”
The 76ers hired Morey back in November 2020 to come in and help build a championship contender around Joel Embiid. He gradually broke down the team he initially inherited, which saw Embiid partnered alongside Ben Simmons, and built things back up around Tyrese Maxey, who proved to be a great partner-in-crime for the Cameroonian big man.
Embiid’s lack of availability, particularly over the past few seasons, certainly didn’t make Morey’s job easier, but he’s been criticized for a handful of his decisions. While he’s nailed draft picks like Maxey and VJ Edgecombe, he was often passive when it came to making in-season upgrades. That was on full display this season, as Morey traded away Jared McCain to the Oklahoma City Thunder, rather than actually upgrading his team.
The McCain trade seems to have been the final straw, as Morey confidently declared he was selling high on McCain, only for him to become a key piece of the Thunder’s rotation as they aim to win their second straight championship. Myers understands why Morey is facing backlash for so many of his moves, but he made it clear that the team is looking to maximize the value of the four draft picks it received in return for McCain.
“I like Daryl. I’m not gonna disparage Daryl here today, I think he did a fine job, and I think he’s a good person,” Myers said when speaking to reporters. “Right now, we have the 22nd pick (from the Jared McCain trade), our job is to get that right. We have 3 second-round picks from it. We should be graded on the ultimate result of transactions like that. I made draft picks where we got an ‘F’ right away.”
76ers Must Nail Their Next General Manager Hire
GettyThe Philadelphia 76ers fired president of basketball operations, Daryl Morey, after the franchise was swept in the second round of the NBA Playoffs by the New York Knicks.
It’s easy to rip on the McCain trade right now, but Myers is right in pointing out that the winner of the deal is unknown. The 76ers are going to have their work cut out for them when it comes to using these draft picks to properly replace McCain, and in a sense, it’s going to be up to Morey’s replacement to find a way to clean up his predecessor’s mess.
Philadelphia’s sudden playoff exit was certainly disappointing, but against the Celtics, this team proved it can go toe-to-toe with some of the top squads in the league and come out on top. Keeping Embiid healthy is obviously the most important piece of business for the 76ers moving forward, but beyond that, it’s going to be up to the team’s new general manager to ensure that it has the right pieces in place, regardless of whether or not Embiid is on the court.
Bob Myers Sends Strong Daryl Morey Message After 76ers’ Firing