CAMDEN, NJ — Fresh off of a trade deadline that saw them send out Matisse Thybulle and welcome Jalen McDaniels, the Philadelphia 76ers are turning their attention to contending for the championship. Team president of basketball operations Daryl Morey seems confident that the Sixers have the talent around Joel Embiid and James Harden to compete for the ultimate prize.
In addition to discussing what makes McDaniels an upgrade over Thybulle, Morey gave his take on the Sixers' chances to win a championship. Not surprisingly, he believes his squad has what it takes.
“I think we've put ourselves in position to win the title,” he said. “That's what you want to do when you get to this point. I think we've made an upgrade. We're hoping to continue to make some upgrades and we want to be playing our best basketball going into the playoffs. We have a very tough stretch in March and I think that stretch should help us get to the question earlier, sort of [make us] battle-hardened as we go into the playoffs.”
The month of March will see the Sixers play 17 games, only five of which will be home and many will come against playoff teams like the Milwaukee Bucks, Phoenix Suns, Dallas Mavericks and Denver Nuggets. It will indeed be a very tough slate of games that will reveal just how good the Sixers are.
One of the biggest talking points around the Sixers is their backup center situation. The team had reportedly expressed interest in a number of players but ultimately came away with none. They will go back to the buyout market to search for another backup center.
“I think we have a lot of versatility with the lineup. Doc does a very good job figuring it out,” Daryl Morey said when asked about the position. “I think what most people worry about is when Joel's off…We're gonna improve that. That hasn't been as good as we want it to be.”
The Sixers are third in the Eastern Conference exiting the trade deadline. Figuring out what to do in the minutes Embiid sits will be crucial to their chances of making a playoff run. They have a few months to do that and find more ways to mesh as a squad before the real fun begins.
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