Philadelphia 76ers: 3 reasons Daryl Morey can deliver a contender

2. He understands his stars

It’s easy to look at Houston’s roster and worry about Morey’s fit in Philadelphia. Morey didn’t just like short dudes, though. He engineered Houston’s ultra-small ball rotation to maximize the skill set of James Harden, a superstar guard who’s at his best annihilating isolated defenders with a spaced floor around him.

In Philadelphia, Morey will have to adjust his approach. He will need to consider Embiid’s skill set and where it diverges from the typical lead star. He will need to consider not only Ben Simmons’ weaknesses, but his strengths as well — and, more importantly, how those strengths can work in conjunction with Embiid.

Morey and the Sixers are still, by all indications, committed to the Embiid-Simmons duo. As they should be. It’s rare to have two top-20 players who have yet to reach their prime, and Morey’s too smart to break that up on aesthetic preference.

Will he add more guards and shooters to the rotation? Probably, because that’s how you build a successful roster around Philadelphia’s core. Simmons creates more 3-point looks for teammates than anyone in basketball. He’s also a hyper-efficient scorer at the rim. To act as if he exists outside Morey’s basketball conscience is silly.

The Sixers finally have someone who can take analytics and apply them effectively. And, more importantly, they have someone who won’t go out of his way to