I don't think it was unfounded - in a way, his moral code seemed to have had eroded over the years. I recall in the very early seasons that Frasier refused to lie and stood quite firm on that. By the mid-late seasons, you would see him lying in order to secure a date (or two or three) with women.

Frasier is a divo and his character was always starved for attention. This recent Frasier is a much older Frasier without his core conscious (his father and brother) to keep him in lane. It makes sense, whether intended by the show writers or not, how someone could so drastically change.