Doc Rivers will return for a third year as coach of the Philadelphia 76ers, according to the president of basketball operations.
After the Philadelphia 76ers were eliminated from the playoffs by the Miami Heat on Friday, Morey said he loved working with him. I feel like I am learning from him. I think the general manager and I make a great team, and we are going to see where this journey takes us.
We feel good about where it will take us, and we have a good chance to win the title.
It has been the goal of the past two seasons in Philadelphia, since Morey and Rivers arrived, to take this team to level it hasn't reached in a generation. Since reaching the NBA Finals in 2001, the 76ers have lost in the second round of the playoffs four times.
Since 1983, the 76ers haven't won an NBA title.
Morey said he wanted to trade Ben Simmons and other players for James Harden at the trade deadline.
On Friday, Morey repeatedly said the 76ers are looking forward to spending the off-season finding ways to "unlock" Harden, who was subpar in the playoffs (18.6 points, 8.6 assists), and to clean up the fit with star center Joel Embiid.
Morey danced around the question of if fans should lower their expectations for Harden or if he has more levels to reach.
Morey said he was looking forward to Rivers and his staff finding ways to use Harden.
Look. He is an incredibly talented player. I am excited for Doc and his staff to work with the players and come up with the best plan for the roster we have. Having it all come together in February makes it difficult to figure out how to work together.
We know he is a very skilled player, and we will figure out how to use him.
Harden said that he will be back in Philadelphia next season, as he ponders what to do with his player option this summer.
Morey said the plan was to have him back. We have to work with his representation and that will be between us to figure out how that works.
It was a melancholy mood, as one would expect for a team that bounced out of the playoffs in the manner that it did, with two ugly losses to the Heat.
Morey said that they are sick because they have big ambitions. I know our fans do the same. That is why we are here. We do this because of that. It is difficult to be here right now. Still emotional.
We are excited about what we can build from here. We think that we can improve on a lot of things, and we think that we can improve on Coach Rivers. We are going to figure this out. There is a lot to build on.
Thanks to the presence of Embiid, Philadelphia has a strong foundation to build upon, but there is still a lot of work to be done. The perimeter defense was a constant problem all season for the 76ers, and Miami star Jimmy butler was able to get what he wanted against them in this series. It was an issue with depth.
Morey said defense was going to be a focus, while Rivers said the team needs more toughness.
A lack of mental toughness is a common theme in exit interviews with players, according to Morey. I think we all need to look in the mirror and ask how we can be better. That goes for me as well.
What the 76ers have done the past two seasons is not better than what they have done in the past three seasons. It's not easy to advance in the playoffs, and requires a learning curve from up and down an organization, according to Rivers.
Rivers said that winning is hard. It is hard, we are moving on. We are not the only organization. It is hard to move on. We did not get it done last year. It was a tough year. The answers are easy with all the injuries. It is hard. We are right there. We were in the argument. You can only do that. You keep working at it until you get over the mountain.
It took Milwaukee two or three years to get over the mountain. That is the way it works. It is not guaranteed to anyone.
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