Daryl Morey might not have lied to James Harden, but he’s lying to himself.
Daryl Morey is a liar, but not necessarily the kind that has made James Harden so resentful. We may never be certain whether Morey swindled Harden, a serially disgruntled star. But Morey cannot dodge responsibility for the deception that now torments the Philadelphia 76ers: his unyielding belief that Harden is worth the trouble.Morey lied to himself, and then he lied to the franchise and all of its anxious followers.
Back then, Morey acquired Harden just as he was about to ascend from Sixth Man of the Year to superstar, forging a partnership that would reimagine perimeter offensive basketball. When coach Mike D’Antoni joined the Rockets from 2016-2020, they took their unorthodox efficiency to an absurd level, having unimaginable success with a three-point-chucking approach that Harden orchestrated with his ball-dominant, dribble-probing style.
Until recently, Morey didn’t see the decline clearly, either. Before last season, Harden opted out of his contract and took a team-friendly deal, resulting in a $15 million pay cut that he probably figured he would get back later. Then he turned in another uneven season, complicating any contract extension talks. So he opted into the final year of his deal, reportedly believing that Morey would facilitate a trade quickly. He wants to return home and play for the Los Angeles Clippers.
Rivers lost his job because he couldn’t lead the Sixers past the second round. Embiid seems to be losing his patience. Morey replaced Rivers, a championship coach, with Nick Nurse, a more recent winner. And the team president refuses to minimize expectations: “Our goal is to win the championship.”After the Simmons saga, Morey needed to make a big trade. But he didn’t need to flip Simmons for Harden. His greatest decision has now devolved into his worst.
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