Sixers fire president of basketball operations Daryl Morey; Nick Nurse to return as head coach
The Philadelphia 76ers finally beating the Boston Celtics in the NBA playoffs was not enough to save president of basketball operations Daryl Morey's job.
The Sixers on Tuesday fired Morey, days after Knicks fans took over Xfinity Mobile Arena and New York blew the team out to complete a sweep in the second round. ESPN reports that head coach Nick Nurse is set to return for his fourth season in Philly.
Bob Myers, the former Golden State Warriors executive who won four titles, will lead the search for Philly's new president of basketball operations. Myers is now the president of Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment, which owns the Sixers.
Sixers managing partner Josh Harris thanked Morey for his contributions to the organization over the last six seasons in a statement.
"I have a tremendous amount of respect for Daryl personally and professionally, and I'm grateful for his contributions over the last six seasons," Harris said in statement. "After speaking with Daryl, we determined that it was time for a fresh start. Bob Myers will lead the process of identifying a new leader and I believe his experience in constructing four NBA championship teams will be a valuable resource to our organization."
"To our fans, your frustration and disappointment are understandable and warranted. We have fallen well short of our own expectations and failed to deliver in the way this city deserves. That bothers me deeply and I have confidence in Bob to establish a path forward for our franchise."
Morey's firing comes after Knicks fans swarmed Xfinity Mobile Arena and made Sixers home playoff games feel like Madison Square Garden for the second time since 2024.
Joel Embiid pleaded for Sixers fans not to sell their tickets to Knicks fans, and the team gave away 500 tickets to local groups. It wasn't enough.
The Sixers were embarrassed by the Knicks 144-114 in Game 4 in front of a New York-heavy crowd in South Philadelphia. After the loss, Tyrese Maxey said it "absolutely sucks" to see their home court infested with Knicks fans.
Knicks forward Josh Hart knows Philadelphia well, starring at Villanova University.
"I used to think Philly was a sports town," Hart said. "I don't know if it is anymore."
The embarrassment was enough to lead to significant changes in the Sixers' front office.
A look back at Daryl Morey's Sixers tenure
Morey, the former NBA executive of the year in 2018, joined the Sixers as president of basketball operations in the 2020-21 season after he departed the Houston Rockets. Over the past six seasons, Philadelphia has had a 270-212 regular-season record and made the playoffs five times.
However, the teams built by Morey failed to get past the Eastern Conference semifinals every postseason.
The Sixers haven't advanced to the Eastern Conference finals since Allen Iverson led the team on a magical run in 2001 to the NBA Finals. The Game 4 loss to the Knicks only extended their infamous Eastern Conference finals drought.
When Morey became Philadelphia's president of basketball operations, the team was in a tough spot after years of mismanaging premium assets and handing out undesirable contracts.
Morey's first big move shipped Al Horford's contract to the Oklahoma City Thunder in a deal that landed Danny Green, which gave the Sixers a playable 3-and-D wing and more flexibility moving forward. But Morey's future moves fell short of getting the Sixers over the hump.
Morey acquired James Harden in a trade package that included Ben Simmons, but his relationship with his former Rockets star soured. It ended with Harden calling Morey a "liar" at an event in China before he was eventually shipped off to the Los Angeles Clippers.
Another one of Morey's big moves was signing Paul George to a max contract to build a big three with Embiid and Maxey. The Sixers-Celtics series showed why Morey made the move, as the team's big three helped Philadelphia make a historic comeback.
But the George signing has had mixed results through two seasons. He's only played in 78 out of 164 regular-season games the last two years due to injuries and a 25-game suspension for violating the NBA's anti-drug program. George, 36, has two more years left on his contract.
While Morey has had plenty of swings and misses in free agency, especially on veterans well past their prime, he's drafted well throughout his six years in Philadelphia.
Morey's decision to select Maxey at No. 21 overall in the 2020 draft and pick VJ Edgecombe No. 3 overall in last year's draft has given the Sixers a backcourt to build around for the future, but another move involving a beloved guard might've contributed to him being ousted.
Trading Jared McCain aged poorly for Morey
At the NBA trade deadline, Embiid had one request for the front office: Don't sell at the deadline and duck the tax like they usually do.
Morey then did exactly that. He traded second-year guard Jared McCain to the Oklahoma City Thunder for four draft picks and admitted to "selling high" on the former Duke guard.
Since that trade, McCain has played well for the Thunder, the defending champs who are heading back to the Western Conference Finals.
In Monday night's Game 4 win to sweep LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers in the conference semifinals, McCain had 13 points in 16 minutes off the bench. Meanwhile, in the Sixers' season-ending loss to New York, they didn't have a single bench player score more than 9 points.
In 30 regular-season games with the Thunder, McCain averaged 10.4 points and shot 39.1% on 3-pointers. Heading into Monday night, McCain was shooting 62.5% on 3-pointers for OKC, and had 18 points in a Game 2 win over the Lakers last week.
McCain fell out of the rotation in Philadelphia after he started the season with an injury, but could've been Rookie of the Year in the 2024-25 season if not for his injury.
McCain could've been a useful piece for a Sixers team that ran their starters into the ground in the playoffs, especially in the Game 2 loss to the Knicks, where Maxey played 47 minutes.
McCain isn't the only former Sixers player having success in the playoffs on another team.
McCain's Thunder teammate, Isaiah Joe, was waived by the Sixers in 2023 at the end of the preseason.
Joe has developed into sharp-shooting bench piece for OKC over the last few seasons. He averaged 11.1 points and shot 42.3% on 3-pointers for the Thunder in the regular season.
Paul Reed, who was waived by the Sixers after four seasons in 2024, has provided the No. 1 seed Detroit Pistons with solid minutes off the bench in the Eastern Conference playoffs.
Then, there's San Antonio Spurs forward Julian Champagnie.
Champagnie, who signed a two-way contract with the Sixers after going undrafted in 2022, was waived by the Sixers in 2023 so that Mac McClung could represent Philadelphia in the NBA Dunk Contest.
Champagnie then signed with the Spurs, where he's developed into a key piece for San Antonio. He started in 68 games in the regular season and averaged 11.1 points and shot 38.1% on 3-pointers.
Nick Nurse did enough to save his job — for now
Nurse, who was hired by the Sixers in May 2023 to replace Doc Rivers, squeezed 45 wins out of the Sixers this season and coached the team to a playoff series win over the Celtics.
The 45 wins were a strong bounce-back after the team's 24-win season in 2024-25, riddled with injuries to Embiid, George and Maxey.
In three seasons, Nurse has coached the Sixers to a 116-130 record and two playoff appearances. During his tenure as Sixers head coach, Nurse dealt with a slew of injuries to his top players and little depth.
What's next for the Sixers?
The Sixers enter the offseason with their core intact.
Embiid, Maxey, George and Edgecombe are all under contract through at least the 2028-29 season, and the next president of basketball operations will have tough decisions to make with the margins of the roster.
Quentin Grimes, Kelly Oubre Jr. and Andre Drummond, among others, will become free agents this offseason after another playoff exit for Philadelphia.
Philadelphia also owns the No. 22 overall pick in the 2026 NBA draft after the McCain deal.
Myers, a two-time NBA executive of the year who joined HBSE full-time in 2025 after his time with the Warriors and ESPN, is now tasked with leading the search for Philly's next president of basketball operations.
"I know how much the 76ers mean to the City of Philadelphia, and it's important we find the right leader to shape the future of this team," Myers said in a statement. "The process will start immediately, and we will be thorough and deliberate in our evaluations. I believe this is a destination for top talent across the league and look forward to solidifying our infrastructure moving forward."