Philadelphia 76ers: Ending "The Process" & Starting Anew with a Cultural Shift

By Kira Zahara Ahsan

The Sixers are a new team this season. The "Process Era" is dead, and the young core is bringing the franchise back to life. Tyrese Maxey's leadership -- his mentorship and chemistry with standout rookie VJ Edgecombe, his own further improvement and exemplary hustle in order to get "1% better every day," and his help in easing Embiid's mental transition to having less of a "being the guy" mentality and having more of a "how can I contribute when I am able to play" mindset -- is now the cornerstone of this team's surprising success.

A team that most considered, going into the 2025-2026 season, as one that would be lucky to squeak into the playoffs via the play-in, is now 4th in the Eastern Conference standings. Hats off to Nick Nurse and Daryl Morey for pivoting to a new long-term strategy involving cultivating young talent, creating depth, and installing a new locker-room culture of more positivity and a NO EXCUSES mentality. Keeping Kyle Lowry on the roster to essentially be a high-paid assistant coach is likely helping behind the scenes to augment Maxey’s leadership.

I talk often about how the Oklahoma City Thunder essentially provided the blueprint for success in today's NBA, especially with the new collective bargaining agreement that penalizes teams for "star-chasing" via trades and free agency instead of focusing on internal development. Daryl Morey went all in on this approach with the drafting of Edgecombe, the re-signing of Quentin Grimes, and the new signings of additional young pieces Trendon Watford and Dominick Barlow — who is still on a two-way contract, but not for long if he keeps taking full advantage of the extra playing time that he’s getting in the absence of Kelly Oubre, Jr.

Just because the blueprint for success in the modern league was served up to the world on a platter by the Thunder doesn't mean that it's easy to execute. Immaculate team-first cultures aren’t built overnight. Even some of the day-to-day changes would fall flat under poor leadership — things like being ready to use a 10-man rotation each game in a “plug-and-play” fashion, bringing defensive intensity to every possession over an 82-game season, and truly delivering the same brand of basketball and teamwork for every game regardless of players’ availability.

However, Daryl Morey has done an impressive job in finally leaving behind "The Process" and embracing a new reality with the health of Embiid almost guaranteed to be tenuous from now on. Instead of pouting about the albatross of a contract that the Sixers are now stuck with for the next 4 years, Morey is flexing GM skills in his ability to pivot to the new #VJMaxx era and helping the organization to evolve with the times. He has turned the corner in his GM tenure just in time, in my opinion, to be awarded a contract extension (report on December 15, 2025) instead of being fired.