When Daryl Morey, president of the Philadelphia 76ers, signed Paul George, re-signed Tyrese Maxey, and extended Joel Embiid last offseason, he certainly didn’t envision the team struggling with a 20-30 record, finding themselves 11th in the Eastern Conference after the NBA trade deadline.

In a recent press conference, Morey expressed optimism, stating, “We feel like that team has a real shot. We’ve made our path to win harder, obviously. We will need to fight to get into the playoffs and face formidable opponents in the first round, but we are focused on achieving a championship.”

Currently, Joel Embiid is preparing for his 15th game after recovering from a knee injury and recorded a 29-point triple-double recently in a match against the Dallas Mavericks. Morey emphasized that with both Embiid, Maxey, and newcomer George finally playing together, the team harbors hope that better performances can follow.

“We had a plan going into this year,” he explained, “and Mike Tyson said it well: plans are great until you’re hit in the face. We’ve been severely impacted by injuries this season, but our players have held it together.”

Looking ahead to the playoffs, Morey reiterated his commitment to constructing a competitive team while preserving the core around Embiid, highlighting the importance of retaining valuable players like Andre Drummond and expressing confidence in the direction of the team despite current struggles.