76ers' General Manager under scrutiny for using AI for basketball decisions

Amidst the AI revolution, programmers, writers and every type of white-collar worker has been affected by the rise of the tools. However, an unexpected area has emerged in the field of sports - using AI to assist with decisions on the basketball court.

2

Daryl Morey, the pioneer of 'Moreyball' (Credit: NWU)

Daryl Morey, the GM of the Philadelphia 76ers, was previously known for his 'Moreyball' strategy - utilizing analytics in the construction of a roster, and essentially min-maxing in terms of applying the team's strategies on the court by prioritizing threes and layups.

At a recent conference, Morey opened up about the use of analytics in the AI era. Notably, he expanded on his use of LLMs, in particular, their widespread use within the team's decision-making.

"We absolutely use models as a vote in any decision and how much of that decisions depends on the assumptions behind those models," he said.

One of the examples he raised was draft picks. When it comes to selecting a rookie to join the team, he highlighted that if a model has demonstrated success, and if the variables around the game, its rules and playstyles, haven't significantly changed - then the model gets priority.

"So, if you have a highly successful model for picking draft picks, and we think that the game hasn't changed, the rules, then the models get a lot of weight in those decisions."

The use of analytics, in particular the use of AI, are somewhat of a controversial subject in basketball. Morey's teams have achieved relative success in the past, and he is widely recognized as a pioneer in the analytics-driven era of basketball, but as the Philadelphia 76ers currently underperform throughout the 2024-25 season, his reliance on data has been under scrutiny from both players and fans.

"Daryl Morey was at the forefront of that analytics push in the NBA and I think a large part of that is he never played basketball," Warriors forward Draymond Green said.

As the Philadelphia 76ers, who were expected to be among the best in the NBA this year, continue to deal with injuries and underperform - the questions surrounding AI in sports will only continue to mount.

• Read more: Vibe Coding: What Is It and How It's Affecting Software & Gaming
• Read more: How AI Is Reshaping Archaeology: From 5,000-Year-Old Civilizations in Dubai to Mongolia