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Bob Myers stood before the Philadelphia 76ers media Thursday for the first time and faced a direct question: what will it actually take to get this franchise to a championship?
His answer was blunt.
"I believe that adage," Myers said, referring to the NBA saying that it is harder to go from good to great than from bad to good. "Because when you're bad, you can try anything, and if it doesn't work, you're still bad. But if you're good, you have to risk something to go to great. … You risk making a mistake and falling back to bad."
Myers was hired in October when he left his role as an NBA analyst at ESPN to join Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment as its president of sports. He is best known for building the Golden State Warriors rosters that produced four championships between 2015 and 2022, a run built around Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green, with Kevin Durant joining temporarily during that stretch.
Now Myers is running Philadelphia's basketball operations on an interim basis while the team searches for a replacement for Daryl Morey, who was let go after the New York Knicks swept the Sixers in the Eastern Conference semifinals. The loss was another early exit for a franchise that has not reached the Eastern Conference finals since Allen Iverson led Philadelphia to the NBA Finals in 2000-01.
The news conference ran more than 30 minutes and covered a wide range of topics. Myers and team owner Josh Harris were both pressed about the mid-season trade that sent Jared McCain to the Oklahoma City Thunder, a deal that drew criticism from fans and analysts. Harris also faced questions about his perceived reluctance to spend into the luxury tax and about Knicks fans who took over the atmosphere at Xfinity Mobile Arena during last week's playoff series.
Myers also addressed what it will take for the team's players to be part of a championship run.
"It's a hard look at everything. It's a hard look at whoever we hire, and we'll place it on them. It's a hard look at what I've experienced and what I know that makes a championship team," Myers said. "But it's also a question to our players: 'Do you want to get uncomfortable?' Because it takes a great level of uncomfortability to win a championship."
Questions about injured center Joel Embiid and head coach Nick Nurse and how each fits into the franchise's future were also raised during the session, according to Yahoo Sports. Myers did not signal any immediate changes on either front.
The search for a new president of basketball operations is ongoing. The Sixers would like to have someone in place before the NBA Draft, which gives the front office a tight window to fill the position.
