What kind of team will the Sixers be after Joel Embiid? For Daryl Morey, it’s the question of the offseason
The Sixers' first-round pick in the NBA draft can be the first step in the right direction. They cannot dig themselves a deeper hole with a trade for win-now assets.
The fleeting nature of NBA team-building came into sharp focus on Monday night. Not long ago, Jrue Holiday was heralded as the Celtics’ missing piece. Now, he’s just plain missing. Kristaps Porziņģis could soon follow. With superstar Jayson Tatum set to miss the 2025-26 season with an Achilles tendon injury, the best team in the Eastern Conference will be taking a gap year.
The same likely is true for this year’s conference champs. Tyrese Haliburton’s torn Achilles in Game 7 of the NBA Finals is the kind of thing that makes you question whether the universe really is guided by some benevolent life force. The Pacers surely are doubters in the 2025-26 season, at least.
Who will take advantage of the void? It’s the biggest question in the NBA now that the Thunder officially are its reigning champs. The opportunity is most acute for the Cavaliers and the Knicks, who might otherwise have entered October wondering if they would ever get over the hump. The Magic surely see the steam rising from the iron, having just acquired a much-needed perimeter scorer in star Desmond Bane. The youth of their roster suggests their best days still are years in the future. But the opportunity may not get any better than the present.
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What about the Sixers?
You have to hope that Daryl Morey and Josh Harris aren’t asking themselves that question. Between Wednesday’s draft and the start of the free agent negotiation period on June 30, the upcoming week offers the Sixers a tantalizing number of opportunities to dig themselves a deeper hole. The last we heard from Morey, he was still clinging to the idea that the Sixers could be a contender in 2025-26 with a healthy Joel Embiid, Paul George, and Tyrese Maxey.
“We think it’s wide-open,” Morey said in a Q&A with the 76ers’ website after the draft lottery. “Obviously, we have great players in their prime in Joel, Tyrese, and Paul. And now we have just a fantastic complement of young players, which this No. 3 pick and the No. 35 pick will add to this season.”
That’s a perfectly fine way to think, as long as Morey maintains a philosophical separation between the win-now stars and the future. The Sixers have an opportunity to live in two worlds. They can hope that Embiid recovers from his latest knee surgery and returns to MVP form, that George has more in the tank than he showed for most of last season, that Maxey still is at a point in his career where another year older means another year better. There is nothing wrong with hoping for the best, as long as Morey balances it by planning for the worst.
The list of do’s and don’ts:
Don’t look at the No. 3 overall pick within the context of Embiid and George. Don’t trade it for win-now assets. Don’t draft a player for his ability to fill a role alongside Embiid and George. Don’t worry about fit.
Do look at the pick within the context of Maxey and 2024 first-rounder Jared McCain. Do assume that the team will be totally in their hands before long.
Don’t prioritize immediate impact or best-case ceiling.
Do prioritize young, dynamic, athletic, two-way talent with a good combination of ceiling and floor.
Don’t sacrifice future potential for present competitiveness, be it in the draft, the trade market, or free agency.
Do look to build.
Don’t look to retool.
The good news is that Morey and the Sixers don’t really have a choice. At least, they shouldn’t have one. Last season’s experience with Embiid should make it clear that they have no idea what to expect out of the big man moving forward. All they can do is be honest with themselves about the odds. What are the probabilities that Embiid plays X more years at Y level?
In terms of present-day competitiveness, nothing matters except Embiid. With him healthy and performing at an elite level, the Sixers can be a contender. Without him, they can’t. They won’t know until they see it on a court in a regulation NBA game. Even then, they won’t know how long it will last.
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In the meantime, they must start preparing for the potential that Embiid and his contract are a massive sunk cost. If someone offers to take George off their hands for a negligible cost, they should jump in with both feet. If they have the ability to add young, maturing talent like they did at this year’s trade deadline with Quentin Grimes, they should take advantage.
Most importantly, Morey and the Sixers should think about what kind of team they want to be in the post-Embiid era. They should think about what it will take to get there. They should hold that prism up to every move that they make, starting with the No. 3 overall pick on Wednesday.