Who Is To Blame For All Of The Philadelphia 76ers’ Shortcomings?
I like to think that this shouldn’t be as hard as it gets made out to be. I got into a discussion last night with the Chickster about these Philadelphia 76ers, more specifically saying that Joel Embiid deserves more blame for this team failing to make it out of the East again this year. Maybe it is because I am a hater, which I will admit I am. But I also hate other things about this organization. So, to keep things fair, why not look at three different people who all deserve some blame for why this team continues to fail year after year.
#1: Daryl Morey
It has to be said. We are KNOWN for calling out GMs when we think they underwhelm and underperform in their role. We have done it with Howie Roseman calling him a cancer, I did it with Danny Ainge when I called him the most overrated GM in the NBA. Now, I think it’s time we acknowledge that Daryl Morey doesn’t know what he’s doing. He failed. He lost the Ben Simmons trade (although, was there ever a real winner in that deal?). He built this team around a fragile big man who doesn’t deliver when the lights are brightest and a guard who has given up on basketball.
This move was never going to work. Let’s be honest. For the biggest reason of sending all your depth away in hopes that James Harden could find his magic again. Harden hasn’t been special for at least a year now, maybe two. If Morey wants to be taken seriously ever again, he needs to realize this team, yet again, isn’t good enough and make some moves this off-season.
#2: James Harden
This leads me to the second person on this list, “The Beard” himself James Harden. This Philadelphia 76ers team was never going to win a title with Ben Simmons, we all know this. But what I didn’t know is why they decided to trade for a player who also wouldn’t help bring them a title. I wrote about James Harden recently about his harsh reality, which is previously linked, so I won’t harp too much on it. But Harden deserves just as much blame as anyone else for why this team failed this year. But Garrett, he was a trade deadline acquisition, you can’t put blame on him. Bullshit, I can and I will. He is a “superstar”, and superstars elevate teams to new heights. He was brought in to be Robin. I don’t even know if Harden made the movie with how poorly he played.
I am not saying he deserves the brunt of the blame, we will get to who does shortly. What I am saying is that NBA fans have to realize that he is not the player he once was. He is dwindling down into nothing more than an overachieving role player, and if Daryl Morey was smart, he would think twice about handing out that max extension next summer.
#3: Joel Embiid
Because it has to be Joel Embiid. Do you really think I was going to make those comments at the start and not list him?
I don’t want to hear about the injuries. Why? He gets hurt every year. He’s made of glass. This year, he played the most games he has ever played during his NBA career. How many, you ask? 68. That’s it. Even in this day and age where stars take rest nights, you don’t miss 14 games for rest. But Garrett, he played injured during the playoffs, the guy cares. He cares about his stats, he doesn’t care about making his team better. If he did, he would have taken a team to an Eastern Conference Finals before. He is supposed to be THE guy for the Philadelphia 76ers. He was supposed to be the MVP this year. Well, Garrett, Nikola Jokic is sitting at home right now. Yep, he sure is. Know who else is? Joel Embiid.
I am not going to turn this into a Nikola Jokic versus Joel Embiid debate. Mostly because I would be on the right side of it, but also because this isn’t the time for it. Why is it that over the last 2-3 years, no one has ever really questioned if it’s really Joel Embiid who is at fault for why this team is stuck in neutral? You don’t necessarily have to trade him… per se. But I think going into next year, with a full year with James Harden, he has to be held to a higher standard. Making it out of the East HAS to be the bare minimum goal. Otherwise, this time next year you’ll be hearing me scream for the 76ers to move off him. Because at that point, all the blame falls on him.
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