The Philadelphia 76ers are working through a disastrous season. Daryl Morey invested heavily during the summer, acquiring a string of talents, including marquee addition Paul George.
Recently, Morey admitted to using AI as part of the Sixers’ overall decision-making process. During a recent appearance on The Kevin O’Connor NBA Show, former Sixers forward Marcus Morris shared his thoughts on Morey’s approach to team building.
“I don’t trust Daryl Morey,” Morris said. “I just don’t trust him, I think he thinking too far ahead of the way basketball needs to be played. He’s trying to do a whole new team, he’s trying to bring guys in, he’s flipping them in and out. Does he even understand the dynamic of being in Philadelphia? What guys need to play in Philadelphia. Understand how a team needs to gel first before you start talking about AI.”
Morey is known for being active in the trade market. He’s also quick to move if he feels like a player isn’t gelling or if he has buyer’s remorse. Morris himself has been on the receiving end of Morey’s quick trigger. He joined the Sixers ahead of the 2023-24 season but was flipped as part of the deal that saw Buddy Hield join the Sixers roster.
What Did Morey Say About Using AI?
During a recent interview with Pablo Torre, Morey was asked whether he utilizes AI as part of his decision-making process wen targeting or trading players.
“We absolutely use models as a vote in any decision,” Morey said. “How much of that decision depends on how much the assumptions behind those models don’t change, and their past success rate. So if you have a highly successful model for picking draft picks, and [the NBA] hasn’t changed the rules yet, then the models get a lot of weight in those decisions.”
Unfortunately, it would appear Morey’s AI needs some fine-tuning. Outside of Guerschon Yabusele, all of the Sixers’ summer additions have failed to impress. In fact, we could likely see the majority of those players be moved throughout the summer.
Sixers Need To Improve Front Court
According to ESPN analyst Kevin Pelton, the Sixers must find a way to improve their frontcourt ahead of next season.
“Although depth wasn’t the primary reason for Philadelphia’s failure, it disappointed nonetheless,” Pelton wrote on March 2. “Backup centers Andre Drummond and Adem Bona haven’t provided the cover the 76ers expected behind Embiid, and Caleb Martin wasn’t the strong role player Philadelphia expected. As a result, the Sixers have given more than 3,500 minutes to players my metric rates below replacement level this season, the league’s eighth-highest total.”
It’s unclear whether Morey will lean on AI during the summer. Regardless of how he does it, he must find ways to fix the Sixers’ depth. Morey will also have a decision to make regarding George’s long-term future. George has been ruled out for the remainder of the current season. Morey could look to re-direct the All-Star elsewhere in the NBA, especially if he believes the franchise needs to go in another direction.
Like Heavy Sports’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on Heavy Sports
The post Former Sixers Player Gets Real on Daryl Morey: ‘I Don’t Trust Him’ appeared first on Heavy Sports.