Daryl Morey’s ‘Needles’ declaration will have fans rolling their eyes

Although Philadelphia 76ers GM Daryl Morey made moves at the deadline, none of them materialized by adding players to his roster, but that’s OK, according to the longtime GM, who still likes his team’s chances this season. After trading Jared McCain to the Thunder for draft capitalMorey says he’s not afraid of various trades from other teams in the Eastern Conference.

For Morey, the 76ers are a team that can they still compete with the upper echelon of the Eastern Conference, he said, according to ESPN.

“We like our chances in the East. We feel like we’re in the mix with the top teams there, obviously we have to prove that on the court,” Moray said. “I’m just repeating. We hoped to add, but we didn’t. But we still believe in this team. It’s still a team that people believe in. People have speculated about the improvements of our competitors from the East.”

“I personally don’t see it. I think all teams made moves at the deadline. But there was no needle mover in my opinion.”

Daryl Morey says there were no ‘needle drivers’ involved in any Eastern Conference trades at the deadline 😬

“People have speculated about improvements from our eastern competitors, I personally don’t see that … There was no needle mover in my opinion.”pic.twitter.com/EnFNTV83V6

— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) February 6, 2026

76ers president of basketball operations Daryl Morey’s comments come on the heels of the Cleveland Cavs’ trade for future Hall of Fame guard James Harden and the Boston Celtics’ acquisition of Nikola Vucevic from the Los Angeles Clippers, among others. The Celtics traded their sixth player of the year candidate, Anferni Simmons, to the Bulls in exchange for Vucevic.

The Cavs sent Darius Garland to the Clippers, while adding guards Keon Ellis and Dennis Schroeder from the Sacramento Kings in a separate deal for De’Andre Hunter. The 76ers, 29-22, have the sixth-best record, trailing the Toronto Raptors by 1.0 games for fifth in the Eastern Conference.

Jared McCain bids a heartfelt farewell to the 76ers

While his trade to the Thunder was a shock, Jared McCain thanks the 76ers and their fans in a heartfelt farewell message.

McCain he addressed the fans in Philadelphia in his Instagram post.

“Philly, I’m so thankful for everything, the love the city has shown, my teammates and staff becoming family. It will always be home to me and incredibly blessed to be recruited here. There’s so much more to say, but I just want to say thank you, Philly ❤💙,” McCain wrote.

In his first media availability with Thunder reporters since the trade, the reporter asked McCain if he had seen his trade from the 76ers.

“No, not at all,” McCain said. “We were all on the bus to the airport, and I just got the call. I had no feeling. I didn’t think it was going to happen, to be honest. It was nothing, I got the call and I just went and told everyone. I went to Tyrese (Maxi) first and it was pretty emotional.”

There is no official word on whether McCain will make his Thunder debut in Saturday’s game against the Rockets.