Grading a Few Sixers’ First-Half
Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images
It’s been an interesting season from Philadelphia, to say the least, making multiple trades and dealing with injuries while still staying toward the top of the East. Joel Embiid’s devastating knee injury was tough to swallow, but the Sixers kept pushing. Philly is currently 32-22 and is 3rd in the Atlantic Division, sitting half a game behind the New York Knicks and 10.5 games behind the Boston Celtics. They are the 5 seed in the Eastern Conference and are 2.5 games ahead of the Play-In Tournament.
Let’s get into the grading:
Daryl Morey – B+
Philadelphia’s President of Basketball Operations, Daryl Morey had an active trade deadline, trading away Furkan Korkmaz, Marcus Morris, and Patrick Beverley as well as 4 2nd Round draft picks and receiving Cam Payne, Buddy Hield, and 2 2nd Round Picks. Morey also signed Kyle Lowry to a 1-year, $2.8 million contract, who was bought out by the Charlotte Hornets. He has been busy and has been making moves to make the team better. The only reason Morey does not get an A rating is because of the loss of Beverley, who was made for Philadelphia. Losing him isn’t good for the locker room, but Payne so far has been better on the court.
Tyrese Maxey – A+
Tyrese Maxey’s 2023-2024 season has been outstanding so far, snagging himself his first All-Star appearance and averaging the most points, assists, rebounds, blocks, and steals of his career. His 25.7 PPG are the 14th most in the NBA and his 6.4 assists are the 17th most. If Maxey continues to play at the high level that he is right now, he could single-handedly keep Philadelphia in contention while Joel Embiid is out.
Nick Nurse – A-
In his first year as the Head Coach of the 76ers, Nick Nurse has already had an impressive tenure. Philadelphia’s 32-22 record is 11th in the NBA and they are 1 win away from the 8th best record. Not having Joel Embiid for the rest of the season will really test if Nurse is a great coach or not, but nonetheless, Nurse has been excellent so far. He has been the perfect replacement for Doc Rivers in Philly.
