Is Daryl Morey getting a pass for quitting on the Rockets?

Although Daryl Morey’s reasons for leaving the Houston Rockets have been proven inaccurate, he’s seemingly gotten away with quitting on the Rockets while they remain at their most vulnerable state.

Former Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey made headlines when he announced that he would be parting ways with the Rockets franchise after 14 years with the organization. The former mathematician immersed himself as one of the best executives across the league during his tenure in Houston, and certainly within the history of the Rockets franchise, which made news of his exit more painful for Rockets fans.

Morey cited his desire to spend time with his family as justification to make the abrupt move to part ways with the contending Rockets, which made sense at the time. Morey has two college-aged kids who are in what he described as a “gap year”, as they’re attending school online, due to the novel coronavirus, which has allowed them to remain at home and presumably be around him more.

But just as Rockets fans were ushering in newly promoted Rafael Stone as their next general manager and adjusting to life without Morey, the basketball world received corresponding news that didn’t coincide with Morey’s justification for stepping down as the Rockets general manager. Morey accepted a new position with the Philadelphia 76ers, pulling off his best Urban Meyer impersonation, as he utilized the notion of wanting to shore up his personal life as an avenue to land a new gig.

If you recall, former University of Florida head coach Urban Meyer left his post as the Gators head coach in 2009, providing the below statement at the time:

“I have ignored my health for years, but recent developments have forced me to re-evaluate my priorities of faith and family. After consulting with my family, Dr. Machen, Jeremy Foley and my doctors, I believe it is in my best interest to step aside and focus on my health and family.”

Meyer added that he was stepping down from his post as the university’s head football coach to “re-evaluate [his] priorities of faith and family,” which was proven to be untruthful after he got hired as the head football coach at Ohio State University, after just one year away from coaching.

Unlike Meyer, Morey didn’t wait that long to land his next gig, as it was pointed out by ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski that Morey began discussing the Sixers’ job almost immediately after leaving his post with the Rockets. Morey’s rapid job change caught the attention of Raheel Ramzanali, who remains one of the top media personalities in the sports sector, and especially in the city of Houston.

That was fast, Daryl. pic.twitter.com/QWuD57NQ2T

— Raheel Ramzanali (@The_Raheel) October 28, 2020

Morey referenced the “gap year” line quite frequently to emphasize his desire to spend time with his family, which became a proven fallacy, while also raising doubt and suspicion within the Rockets’ organization regarding his explanation.

But although Morey’s “gap year” theory has been proved to be incorrect, many within the Rockets fanbase are giving him a pass, as we’ve seen multiple attempts of justifying Morey’s abrupt exit from the Space City.

Next: The excuses for Morey