Dean Wade's relationship with Philadelphia 76ers president of basketball operations Mike Gansey began long before the veteran forward signed with Philadelphia this summer. Gansey helped bring Wade to Cleveland as an undrafted free agent in 2019, and after seven years together with the Cavaliers, the two reunited in Philadelphia, giving him an opportunity to offer insight into the executive now leading the team’s basketball operations.
"He's a great person," Wade said of Gansey. "He's got a great family as well. My wife knows his wife really well from, you know, the past seven years, but I think Mike was a big reason I was in Cleveland and got an opportunity at a two-way. I think he had a big say in that. Coming in every day for the past seven years, he was one of the first people you see when you come in for summer workouts."
Wade earned two multi-year extensions after his initial two-way contract, growing into one of Cleveland's most reliable homegrown contributors. He would start 160 of 342 games over his seven years with the Cavaliers. That proven track record earned him his latest opportunity in Philadelphia.
In just over a month operating as the Sixers’ lead executive, Gansey has quickly reshaped Philadelphia's roster, highlighted by the blockbuster trade that brought Jaylen Brown to the Sixers in exchange for Paul George and four future draft picks. Wade's familiarity with Gansey offered a rare glimpse into the executive's approach as he begins overseeing Philadelphia’s front office.
The deal simultaneously increased the Sixers’ competitive floor, ceiling and window and gave the clearest indication of the type of lead executive Gansey is; one that is competitive and opportunistic.
Wade was asked about his experience with Gansey as a competitor and basketball mind. Over seven years in the same organization, few in Philadelphia are more qualified to provide that insight.
“[Gansey] played Division One basketball at the highest level; he obviously is a very competitive person off that alone, but when you sit down and talk to him and start talking basketball, you realize how competitive and how serious he is as a basketball mind,” Wade said. “I think through free agency, you've seen the moves he's made and everything he's done, he's serious about this, and he knows how to make a team into a real contender, make a team better than before.”
“I think he takes pride in that, and he knows the game so well, and the ins and outs, that all the moves he's made this far have been serious moves, and been super, you know, the way he works is like super step by step, and serious, and as a competitor, you can tell he wants it just as bad as everyone else, if not more, and he's making moves to prove that.”
Gansey won’t see the results of his decisions until the start of the new season, but the Sixers have gone from a franchise torn between two timelines to one focused on a far more complementary timeline that connects each member of the Sixers’ Big Four. More importantly, at least in the interim, Wade's seven years alongside him in Cleveland offered an early glimpse into the approach driving Philadelphia's new front office.
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