8 Comments
Jun 11Liked by Mike O'Connor

I don’t disagree with any of your points but think we can underestimate how not doing stupid things can build and accrue in your favor.

There have definitely been some not great moves and potential to strike some better deals, but the lack of catastrophic failures (which doomed the previous regimes) might not feel laudable, but it very well may be.

Top 3 tenure during the time? No … but top 8? Perhaps.

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Morey has had MVPs on the two teams he has made decisions for: Embiid and Harden. Neither of those teams got past the Conference Finals.

Is there another GM who has had an MVP - not to mention, 2 MVPs on 2 different teams! - who has failed to construct a team around those MVPs good enough to get to the NBA Finals?

I think he may be the only GM to suffer that fate.

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Bit harsh with that historically good GSW team in the conference!

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Not sure why it is considered harsh to simply cite historical facts. Certainly context can be provided, if it is considered necessary, but the facts are what they are.

Now, imho, it is extremely relevant and revealing that Morey has had two MVPs, two of the best players of the last decade, but he has failed to put together a team that has even threatened for a title. When you compare that fact with other MVPs and other teams, how can that not be considered a huge failure?

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author

The Rockets went 7 games with the Durant Warriors in the Western Conference Finals. They came closer to beating them than literally any other team. What are we talking about here? The Rockets won 65 games that year.

Not to mention, he wasn't just GIFTED that MVP. He was the one who actually obtained him.

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Morey gets huge credit for obtaining Harden from OKC. Great trade.

However, imho, there is no way to look at his inability to construct a team that actually gets to an NBA Finals series, as anything but a unique failure.

Examine the MVP list for the 15 years or so. Except for Embiid, Harden and Derrick Rose, every one of those MVP winners has made it, at least, to an NBA Finals series. Rose deserves an asterisk because he destroyed his knee after that MVP season and was never the same.

So, both Embiid and Harden occupy rare, unique space. And what do they have in common? Their GM was Morey, who failed to build a team good enough to take advantage of the league's MVP. Not once, but twice. Is there another GM with that failure on his record?

Getting close - like taking GS to 7 games - only counts with hand grenades and horseshoes.

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Little bit of cherry picking when it suits there mate! 😉

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The most controversial take I think I can have in the Ricky community is that Colangelo and Daryl aren't that far apart. Both were pretty middling. This is the first time I've seen anyone even tiptoe that line so I applaud the bravery.

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