It’s not really a big deal, but social media claims it is.
Daryl Morey is not the most popular figure in Philadelphia at the moment.
His gamble to clear cap space and land nine-time All-Star Paul George didn’t look great in year one. The decision to ink Joel Embiid, who is coming off another surgery on his left knee, to an extension ahead of last season is looking questionable. Though Morey oversaw drafts that landed the team Tyrese Maxey, Jared McCain and VJ Edgecombe, the aforementioned bigger decisions will be his legacy with the Sixers.
On Wednesday, Morey managed to piss off Lakers fans (and practically every person on social media) with some comments he made to The Athletic. The story asked several people involved with the 2020 NBA bubble to reflect on that time. Morey’s answer about whether L.A.’s title in the bubble should have an “asterisk” got people worked up:
Had the Rockets won the title, I absolutely would have celebrated it as legitimate, knowing the immense effort and resilience required. Yet, everyone I speak to around the league privately agrees that it doesn’t truly hold up as a genuine championship. Perhaps the lasting legacy of the NBA bubble is that the NBA should be proud of its leadership at both the beginning and end of the pandemic, even though the champion will forever be marked by an asterisk.
I have to be very transparent about my feelings on this: I could not possibly give less of a shit.
Someone asked Morey about it, he answered while saying most people around the league privately agree. When you read the whole quote it’s really not even that inflammatory. He’s honest that if his Rockets had won it, he would celebrate it as “legitimate.”
There is no asterisk, Lakers fans. You won. You have 17 banners in the rafters. Why do you all give a shit about what Morey, who has yet to win a NBA title, says?
When does the regular season start so we can start complaining about actual basketball decisions Morey makes?