Following the Philadelphia 76ers‘ 122-102 loss to the Chicago Bulls in their season finale, the team took to the stage to address the media one by one as several Sixers reflected on the lost season. Joel Embiid was noticeably absent due to a follow-up and rehab appointment following arthroscopic surgery.
Daryl Morey
President of Basketball Operations Daryl Morey addressed the media for the first time since his infamous squinting statement. The Sixers had gone 4-28 since those words, and Morey, with little further option, had no choice but to take ownership and acknowledge where the season went wrong. Before doing so, Morey made sure to give. a vote of confidence in his star trio of Joel Embiid, Paul George, and Tyrese Maxey.
“Ownership gave us the resources to make aggressive moves this off-season, to put a championship roster around Joel and Tyrese. And sometimes, those aggressive moves don’t initially work out, but we feel good that those three guys are three All-Stars going forward.
“I have to do a better job putting a supporting cast around them. When you go through a season like this, you need to really take a step back, and everyone needs to find a mirror, starting with myself. ‘What could have gone better?’ ‘What can I do better?’ And there’s quite a few things there, I would say.”
Morey would go on to discuss particulars of what may change in his philosophical approach to building the roster next season, which confirmed his return next season before he did so directly.
“Coach Nurse and myself will be back,” Morey said. “But we’re going to, with Elton Brand and ownership, assess everything and where we can get better. We owe that to the fans. We owe that to really everyone who cares so much about this team, [those] who stuck with us through this. And I want to thank the fans that have stuck with us. It is amazing the support we get, even in a very tough season like this.”
Paul George
Paul George has experienced a lost season before. In the summer of 2014, George suffered a compound fracture to both bones in his right leg while scrimmaging with Team USA. George would play only the final six games of the season due to the injury.
As trying as that season was, 2024-2025 may have been George’s toughest test yet.
“It was tough,” George said of the season. “It was a lot for me, I think, from a mental standpoint; a lot of stuff that was just going on that I was trying to balance while being in a new situation. There was internal stuff for me, there was personal stuff for me, there were the fires that were going on out west, where my home is. There was frustration from injuries and then holding myself accountable for not playing to the expectation that I had coming into the season.
“There was just a ton of stuff. Just a ton of stuff that was weighing on me that going into next year, I’ll kind of be free from a lot of those and alleviated from a lot of those. And so I do expect a better season. I expect a better turnaround for myself, [and] for this team.”
Tyrese Maxey
Tyrese Maxey has been forced into the forefront in his time with the Sixers. The 24-year-old guard appears to be built for it, to his credit but is still learning the ropes of the league and growing as a leader.
“I think I’ve learned a lot, honestly, not just [about] myself, but, the entire organization,” said Maxey, reflecting on the season now passed. “I think everybody has learned a lot in the last month, or however long it’s been; that’s been extremely tough for me, just because, at the end of the day, like, I love basketball, you know what I mean, and I want to be out there and I want to go help.
“No matter what the circumstances, I learned a lot of different things. I learned a lot about myself. I learned a lot [about] how to dig yourself out of holes and who to lean on, who you can who can’t lean on and it should be, sorry, man, it happens. It doesn’t feel good, it doesn’t feel great, but it happens, and we have to move on with our lives.”
As far as positive takeaways, the often affable Maxey expressed how the team can right the ship next year.
“This is going to sound bad,” Maxey laughed. “But the one positive that you take away is the only way we can go from here is up, you know? I mean honestly, and then it just like gives us something to build to everybody in this room, if you are here next year, you should have a different type of edge about yourself. You know, I’m saying you should go into the summer with a lot to work on and a lot to prove, myself included.”
Jared McCain
Jared McCain approached the stage in the media room with his signature smile, happy to meet with the media once again as it was a taste of life before his injury. As his recovery from his torn meniscus continues to progress—McCain mentioned that he has started jumping and is doing so without pain—the young Sixer discussed the team’s season and how to deal with the frustration related to it.
“We got hit with the injury bug,” McCain said. “It happens. You just try and hope for a healthier season next time. But you know, I’m ready to get back out there. I know everybody else wants to get back out there. So it happens sometimes, but you just gotta throw it away, learn from what happened, and just keep going.”
Kelly Oubre
The emotions ranged from player to player, with some tending to be more jovial while others seemed relieved that this season was finally over. Initially, Kelly Oubre Jr. fell into the former category, but as he went on, his eyes filled with more competitive fire than arguably any other Sixer.
“What I’ve learned over my 10 years in this league is that it’s like 50% physical, 50% mental, so finding that balance between the two is what makes a great professional, no matter what sports you play. For me and for us, this team, it’s been a really hard teeter-totter throughout the whole year of balancing those because once your mind goes, your body goes as well, but at the end of the day, man, I think we’re all resilient. We’re all very strong. And you know, I kept it together, we kept it together as best as we possibly could in the situation that we’re in.”
“It can’t get any worse [for] one,” Oubre said of the positive takeaways from the year—a sentemate publically shared by multiple teammates. Two, now we can figure out the issues and fix them. And come back, take this offseason, come back, stronger, bigger, better, faster, stronger, and not be in this position again. When it rains, the sun got to shine one day. So I’m looking forward to sunshine.”
Oubre has a player option this offseason, meaning that his return is technically in his control—although the business of the NBA is not that simple. On his desire to return, Oubre spoke passionately.
“I am Philadelphia 76er. I’m blessed to be a part of this organization… This is a business, but at the end of the day, I’m happy, and I feel like, I like to finish what I start, and I don’t feel complete.”
“Absolutely, I was pushed throughout the whole year of finding my voice, Oubre said. “But just showing up, consistently, going hard it. I pray it does, but I think it inspires the younger guys coming into this league. And that’s all I want to do, is inspire, you know, allow people to realize who they are.”
