Sixers’ Daryl Morey Dishes Honest Thoughts on 2024 NBA Draft

Where is Daryl Morey's head at regarding the Philadelphia 76ers' first-round pick?

Dec 15, 2023; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia 76ers resident of Basketball Operations / Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

On Sunday, the NBA held its yearly lottery, which is no longer of interest to the Philadelphia 76ers.

While the Sixers’ days of playing for favorable odds in the ping pong ball selection are behind them, they are able to make a selection near the end of the lottery in this year’s draft.

Considering the Sixers are gunning for a title as early as next season, they are viewed as a candidate to potentially trade away their pick for a win-now type of move.

Last week, 76ers President of Basketball Operations Daryl Morey noted that even if the front office held their top selection, their choice of player would be unlikely to have an early impact on the team.

“Immediate help probably never comes in the draft,” said Morey. “There’s really only something less than 10 but greater than five players picked in the range we’re picking in that are good in the first year. That said, we don’t really focus on the draft for help now.”

The Sixers could package their top pick in a trade for a veteran player, similar to a move they made two offseasons ago. When the Sixers held a first-rounder in 2021, they flipped it to the Memphis Grizzlies, along with Danny Green, to land the two-way standout, De’Anthony Melton.

While Morey’s initial thoughts suggests a trade is more likely to happen than not, he made it clear that there are multiple options on the table.

“I do really love 16. The storylines have been that the draft is worse. I don’t see that at all. Actually, I’m very excited about who’s at 16,” said the Sixers President of Basketball Ops. “That said, as you might expect, we have all options on the table: Trade into the future so that we can keep more picks available for future trades. If we do pick, I’m excited about who’s there. We could trade back, pick up a player. I do like having a good core of young players.”

The Sixers have plenty of time to weigh their options. With the draft taking place in late June, they have more than a month to figure out whether they will keep the pick or move off of it by trading back or trading it away entirely.