CAMDEN, N.J. — Daryl Morey is not oblivious to much of the dissatisfaction swirling around the Sixers’ work at the trade deadline.
“I understand the reaction of the fans,” the Sixers’ president of basketball operations said at a post-deadline press conference Friday, “but I feel like that comes from folks being excited about this team.”
The 29-22 Sixers have indeed provided many more sources of excitement this season than last, among them a healthy, dominant Joel Embiid and All-Star starter Tyrese Maxey. However, Morey himself openly acknowledged that he expected a more productive deadline.
We’ll see what the Sixers do in the buyout market, but they subtracted Jared McCain and little-used veteran Eric Gordon without acquiring any players. The Sixers got one first-round draft pick and three second-rounders in the McCain deal.
“Obviously, the big move was with Jared,” Morey said. “Because we’re playing well, we were trying to upgrade the team and add to the team now. That was goal No 1. Obviously, no deal materialized, including using the picks we got from the Jared deal. That’s why we did that move a little early. We were trying to use those draft picks to add now.
“We do feel like this deal sets us up better in the future … but we were looking to add now and nothing materialized. … I do want folks to know that we think this team can make a deep playoff run as one of the top few teams in the (Eastern Conference). We feel like that’s still the case going forward. We were very careful to make sure that the core parts of the rotation were intact.”
Morey fielded multiple questions regarding the Sixers again conspicuously staying under the luxury tax at the deadline. He emphasized ownership’s willingness to go over the tax for worthwhile moves and highlighted now having Dominick Barlow on a standard NBA contract.
“I’d say we were trying to add to the team and we didn’t find a deal that made sense that we thought could move the needle on our ability to win this year,” Morey said. “The CBA pressures were felt up and down the league. To do the Barlow move, to get him on a good long-term deal … because of the first (tax) apron, we had to do moves to create that opportunity.
“But that wasn’t the primary reason for the Jared deal. We see Jared as somebody that’s more likely to help a team in the future. I think that’s fairly obvious; I think he has a bright future. We thought that the draft picks we got would help us more in the future — and could’ve helped us this deadline.
“The picks we got were offered to many teams and nothing materialized for a player that we thought could move the needle with those picks now. But we feel like going forward, those picks will help us build the team in the future in a good way.”
Morey sounded fully aware that he could hear about the McCain trade for years to come. The 21-year-old scuffled for much of his second season after a prolonged injury absence, but he played well in late January and possesses undeniable offensive talent.
What compelled the Sixers to trade McCain now?
“I’m quite confident we were selling high,” Morey said. “Obviously, time will tell. We weren’t looking to sell. I’ll be frank. Teams came to us with aggressive offers for him. You could say, ‘Yeah, that’s because he’s a good player.’ I agree with that. We thought this return was above, for the future value of our franchise, what we could get. The only higher point would’ve been during his run last season. Otherwise, we feel like we did time this well.”
Morey called the Sixers’ picks haul for McCain above that for “a starter-quality player on a good team.”
As far as this season is concerned, it’s natural to wonder whether the Sixers have sufficient depth. Behind high-minute starters Maxey and VJ Edgecombe, the Sixers’ only other guard is Quentin Grimes. That doesn’t count Kyle Lowry, who will turn 40 next month and serves almost exclusively as a mentor and de facto assistant coach. Justin Edwards has had an uneven second year and is the Sixers’ one true bench wing.
Playoff rotations almost always shrink, but the Sixers’ contention hopes ride on reaching the postseason with healthy stars. Everyone’s available for the time being besides the suspended Paul George, although that likely won’t remain the case for the rest of the year. In that sense, one could argue simply adding manpower at the deadline — needle mover or not — would’ve been beneficial.
“We feel like we’re a deep team,” Morey said. “Again, people might not agree, but we do feel like a deep team. In fact, there are many people who are writing that we’re a deep team, so it wasn’t just our opinion. I do think (head coach Nick Nurse) is using our players in an optimal way to win games.
“You for sure always want more good players than bad players. We still have two roster spots. We’ll see what those are still to come. Obviously, we’re thrilled to use one of those spots on Barlow. So we’ll continue to look to add in that marketplace as well, but we do feel like we’re a deep team.”
Morey indicated the Sixers are “in the mix” for top buyout market options and generally valuing the “best player available.”
At the deadline, the Sixers added no players and certainly didn’t do much to garner positive attention from the fanbase.