PHILADELPHIA (AP) 鈥� Give Mike Gansey a pinch of credit for his acknowledgment of the most obvious part of the condition of the franchise as he takes over 鈥� kind of, sort of 鈥� .
鈥淚t鈥檚 not a championship caliber team right now,鈥� Gansey said.
Gansey is already at work as Philadelphia鈥檚 latest operations, trying to find ways to raise the team to a championship level, while deeply hindered by near-untradeable, unwanted contracts tied to aging and unreliable Joel Embiid and Paul George.
Can the Sixers still expect to win a title with Embiid and George on the roster while also trying to build around Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe as the long-term centerpieces for any kind of championship future?
Gansey had few hard solutions 鈥� 鈥淚 just got here,鈥� he noted 鈥� at his first press conference Monday at the 76ers鈥� complex in New Jersey. He certainly can鈥檛 solve all that ails the Sixers on Day 1. Those obstacles include closing the gap on the soaring , and getting into the , a task that seems unlikely to be accomplished with Embiid and George on the roster.
The 43-year-old Gansey, a Northeast Ohio native, who played collegiately at West Virginia, was hired last week to replace . Morey was fired last month after the 76ers were eliminated in the second round of the Eastern Conference playoffs.
The 76ers were to end Morey鈥檚 sixth season in charge, and the organization quickly decided that someone else would lead the basketball operations department.
Enter Gansey.
Gansey joined the Cavaliers in 2011 and had worked as their general manager since 2022 and will lead a bit of revamped front office. Jameer Nelson, the 2004 AP Player of the Year at nearby Saint Joseph鈥檚, was promoted to general manager and replaced former Sixer Elton Brand.
They will report to former Golden State Warriors general manager , president of sports for Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment, which owns the 76ers.
Myers has his own questions about the franchise.
鈥淲e have to become great at something, right?鈥� he asked.
Which raises a more pressing question.
Who is really calling the shots for the 76ers?
Gansey called Myers a 鈥渃heat code鈥� to help him in the front office of a franchise that hasn鈥檛 advanced past the second round in the East since 2001 or won an NBA title since 1983.
鈥淚t鈥檚 just like every front office; you鈥檝e got him, he鈥檚 an extension of ownership with Josh (Harrs) essentially,鈥� Gansey said. 鈥淎ny recommendations, any ideas, we鈥檙e going to go through them. We鈥檙e going to be in alignment throughout the whole organization, Nick Nurse included.鈥�
Gansey said getting Nelson as his GM was a 鈥渂it of a sticking point鈥� before he took the job and championed inheriting Nurse for at least one more season on the bench.
Myers said his main goal is to 鈥渏ust be supportive for Mike and the whole staff.鈥�
Uh huh.
Myers was with Golden State for 12 seasons, getting promoted quickly to general manager and eventually being given the title of president as well. The Warriors won four NBA titles in his time there.
When it comes time to make a final decision on a major trade or signing a free agent, it strains all credibility to suggest Myers won鈥檛 have a major, major say in making the call.
What about Embiid?
How does this franchise ever win a championship as long as it鈥檚 tethered to an aging, fragile and overpriced anchor in Embiid? The 32-year-old Embiid’s three-year, $187 million extension kicks in this season while George is owed more than $110 million over the final two years of his free-agent deal.
Gansey was evasive on Embiid’s future 鈥� much like he was when a similar question was posed that asked about his part in bringing a washed James Harden to Cleveland 鈥� but noted he already had 鈥済ood conversations鈥� with the two-time NBA scoring champion.
鈥淲ith him and the roster we have,鈥� Gansey said, 鈥渢hat鈥檚 who we have. We鈥檝e got to get those guys on the floor. We鈥檝e got to create an identity. Just get them to play basketball.鈥�
Embiid has played only 96 of 246 regular-season games over the last three seasons.
鈥淲e鈥檝e got to find an identity,鈥� Myers said. 鈥淚 mean, that鈥檚 maybe a harsh thing to say. But look at the numbers. We were not elite offensively or defensively. If you鈥檙e going to win at the highest level, you鈥檝e got to be great at something.鈥�
The only way to get great, Myers said, is to have a team’s best players on the court.
Or, player.
Embiid.
鈥淭he good news is this,鈥� Myers said. 鈥淭here鈥檚 no scheduled surgeries this summer. There鈥檚 no injury going into the offseason. In the past, there has been that. This is an opportunity to get better, not to play catch-up for Joel, but to actually get better and build on last year. And with that, the hope’s that he can be on the floor a lot more.鈥�
奥丑补迟鈥檚
Gansey鈥檚 first major move?
The 76ers have the 22nd pick of the June 23 draft, a recent strong suit of the franchise after years of high-profile misses that curtailed the path toward contention.
鈥淲e鈥檝e got to hit on that,鈥� Gansey said.
He said it
鈥淚 want fountains not drains.鈥� 鈥� Gansey鈥檚 way of saying he wanted high-character players with a desire to play in Philadelphia.
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