Patience, not aggression, guided Daryl Morey and the Sixers at the NBA trade deadline.
In a vacuum, it's admirable. Not many general managers truly see the big picture and refuse to overpay for good, not great players and solid, not spectualur stars. No one can be truly angry at the Sixers refusal to meet the reported asking price for Kyle Lowry.
But sports don't exist in a vacuum, and most franchises in the NBA don't control their window-to-win destiny. It doesn't work like that now in an era of super teams and player movement.
The Sixers couldn't pull off a blockbuster for James Harden. They had a walk-away point for Lowry. The assets remain for the next star, whenever that day arrives.
But what about today, and valuing the present over the future? It's easy to assume that the Sixers future will be bright for a long time, and opportunities to win titles will continue to present themselves. But that kind of thinking simply isn't how the league works any longer, and that's before we even factor in the unpredictable nature of Joel Embiid's health and future in the NBA.
The Sixers entered the trade deadline with the top record in the Eastern Conference. They are one of the five-or-so best teams in the NBA, regardless of how you slice the cake and using whichever metric you want to determine efficiency or excellence. They have a roster capable of making a big run in the postseason, but would not be considered the betting favorites to capture a title.
By passing on Lowry in favor of a more reasonable trade for George Hill, the Sixers accepted their fate. If Embiid gets fully healthy and back to the MVP level he was at, maybe the Sixers could surprise the NBA and win it all. If not, there will always be next year, right? And there will always be the next star for Morey to cash those assets in on, right?
Well, hopefully. But the likelihood of the Sixers being this good, stars being available *and* wanting to land in Philadelphia (like Lowry reportedly would have been open to), and the rest of the NBA powers being this vulnerable all happening at the same time again during Embiid's prime isn't very probable. In fact, it might be less likely than he Sixers winning it all with Lowry this summer.
It's easy to look at the Sixers and to expect more growth as Embiid and Ben Simmons reach their primes. But it doesn't always work that way. The 2011 Chicago Bulls won 62 games and earned the top seed in the Eastern Conference before losing to the Miami Heat in the Conference Finals. That team had a 22-year-old Derrick Rose, 25-year-old Loul Deng, and 25-year-old Jokiam Noah. Surely, they'd be back. That Bulls group never again got out of the second round.
The 2013-14 Clippers, led by Doc Rivers, won 57 games and had the NBA's second-best net rating. They were led by 24-year-old Blake Griffin, 25-year-old DeAndre Jordan, and 28-year-old Chris Paul. That team lost in the second round. Surely, they'd be back. That Clippers group never reached a West Finals after being surpassed by the Golden State Warriors dynasty.
It's one thing for us to assume. It's another for Morey to do the assuming.
We don't know how long Embiid will play at this level.
We don't know if the Nets collection of talent (helped put together by the combination of Morey having a walk-away point in Harden negotiations and/or Harden wanting to be in Brooklyn) will just keep getting better, similar to the Warriors.
We don't know if other true NBA contenders will look this vulnerable or banged up this time in 2022, 2023 or 2024.
We don't know when or where the next NBA super team will form.
We don't know if the next star scorer to move (Bradley Beal, Zach Lavine, Dame Lillard, Devin Booker, just to take some guesses) will actually have Philadelphia atop their list. Assets are great. They are better when cashed in at the right time.
Morey effectively chose to not go all-in now, hoping for a clearer future and being able to strike when the moment is perfect and the title is there for the Sixers to grab. But sometimes opportunity comes knocking earlier than you expect. This season feels like one that could have ended in a parade if Morey went all in for Harden or did what he had to now to land Lowry.
Patience is good. It might lead to greatness. But passing on the chance to be great now for the hope of being greater tomorrow is a dangerous way to operate in the new NBA. That's now the Morey way in Philly. Let's hope it's the right path.
