Tilman Fertitta suggests that Daryl Morey could work for an East team

“He had always said, ‘I’m not going to be here forever,’ and ‘At some point, I might want to go back to the East Coast,'” Fertitta said.

Houston Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta says that outgoing GM Daryl Morey had told him well before his recently announced departure that he might eventually “go back to the East Coast” for a future job.

In an interview with local media, Fertitta said this regarding Morey’s future plans, as transcribed by Tim MacMahon of ESPN:

He had always said, ‘I’m not going to be here forever,’ and ‘At some point, I might want to go back to the East Coast. I didn’t think it was going to happen. I knew that this was that year, but Daryl’s been here [almost] 15 years. I was surprised, but yet I remembered the previous conversations. He’s reminded me of that a few times.

Morey said the timing was right for a change, citing his two college-age children who are taking an academic gap year due to COVID-19. Stepping away from his job will allow for more time with them.

As for Fertitta, he said he anticipated his relationship with Morey to extend well beyond the official Nov. 1 date for Morey’s departure. And if the 48-year-old GM ends up with a team in the Eastern Conference, he wouldn’t be in direct competition with the Rockets. As the Houston owner sees it, that could open up all sorts of possibilities.

I’m going to miss Daryl. But I’m also going to pick up the phone and call his ass if I’m worried about doing something or not. If he ends up back in the league, I think that he’ll probably end up in the East Coast. That’s where he always told me he wanted to end up, so I think that he’ll tell me anything, because he knows that he won’t have to face me until the Finals.

We would both trade information to get there and play each other, wouldn’t we?

Per ESPN, Morey replied: “I would love to. Absolutely.”

Morey and Fertitta have had a strong working relationship since the latter’s purchase of the team, which was finalized in October 2017. Morey will be replaced in Houston by previous No. 2 executive Rafael Stone, who appears likely to continue with Morey’s analytics-driven approach.

In Morey’s 13 years at the helm, the Rockets ranked No. 2 in the entire NBA in total wins. As such, he would likely have a strong market for his services, should he eventually decide to return to the league.

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