The Philadelphia 76ers
(also known as the Sixers
for short) are a professional basketball team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They play in the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association (NBA).
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PHILADELPHIA 76ERS TICKETS
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NBA Eastern Conference First Round: New York Knicks vs. Philadelphia 76ers - Home Game 1, Series Game 1 Tickets 4/20 | Apr 20, 2024 Sat, 6:00 PM | | NBA Eastern Conference First Round: Boston Celtics vs. TBD - Home Game 1, Series Game 1 Tickets 4/21 | Apr 21, 2024 Sun, 1:00 PM | | NBA Eastern Conference First Round: New York Knicks vs. Philadelphia 76ers - Home Game 2, Series Game 2 Tickets 4/22 | Apr 22, 2024 Mon, 7:30 PM | | NBA Eastern Conference First Round: Boston Celtics vs. TBD - Home Game 2, Series Game 2 Tickets 4/24 | Apr 24, 2024 Wed, 7:00 PM | | NBA Eastern Conference First Round: Philadelphia 76ers vs. New York Knicks - Home Game 1, Series Game 3 Tickets 4/25 | Apr 25, 2024 Thu, 7:30 PM | |
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Franchise history
Syracuse Nationals
In 1946, Danny Biasone sent a $5,000 check to the
National Basketball League offices in Chicago, and the Syracuse Nationals became the largely Midwest-based league's easternmost team.
[1] In 1949, the Nationals were one of seven NBL teams that merged with the
Basketball Association of America to form the NBA. In
1955, the Nationals (led by forward
Dolph Schayes) won the NBA championship.
Move to Philadelphia
By the early 1960s, the NBA's Nationals were struggling. Syracuse was the last of the medium-sized cities, but it was too small for a professional team to be profitable. Paper magnate Irv Kosloff bought the Nationals from Danny Biasone and moved them to Philadelphia in 1963. The NBA thus returned to Philadelphia one year after the
Warriors had left for
San Francisco. A contest was held to decide on their new name and the winner was the late Walt Stahlberg. Their name was changed to the "76ers", after 1776, the year the
Declaration of Independence was signed in Philadelphia. The nickname was quickly shortened to "Sixers" by headline writers, and the two names soon became interchangeable for marketing purposes.
For their first four years in Philadelphia, the Sixers played mostly at the
Philadelphia Arena and
Civic Center-Convention Hall, with an occasional game at
The Palestra at the
University of Pennsylvania.
Wilt the Stilt
In the 1964–65 season, the 76ers acquired the legendary
Wilt Chamberlain from the Warriors; Chamberlain had been a high school legend in Philadelphia and began his career with the Warriors while they still played in Philadelphia. In Chamberlain's first full year back in Philadelphia, the Sixers ended the
Boston Celtics' eight-year reign as Eastern Division regular-season champions. The 76ers would push the Celtics to seven games in the Eastern Conference Finals, with the 76ers trailing 110–108 in Game 7. After
Hal Greer's pass was stolen by
John Havlicek—an infamous blow to 76ers fans, rubbed in by fabled Celtics announcer
Johnny Most when he yelled into the microphone "Havlicek stole the ball!"—the Celtics went on to beat the 76ers and win another NBA Championship.
Unforgettable 1966–67 season
Led by head coach
Alex Hannum, the 76ers had a dream season as they started 46–4,
[2] en route to a record of 68–13, the best record in league history at the time.
[3] Chamberlain,
Billy Cunningham, and
Hal Greer, along with all-stars
Chet Walker,
Lucious Jackson and
Wali Jones led the team to the Eastern Conference finals. This time, with the Celtics aging and hurt, the 76ers beat the Celtics in five games. In Game Five of that series, as the 76ers went to victory and the NBA Finals, rabid Philadelphia fans chanted "Boston is dead!"—a symbol that the Celts' eight-year reign as NBA champion had ended. The Finals were almost anticlimactic, with the Sixers ousting the Warriors in six games to give them their first NBA Championship. The 1966–67 Sixers were voted the best team in league history during the NBA's 35th anniversary celebration.
Fall and rebirth of the 76ers
In the 1967–68 season, with a new home court in the form of the
The Spectrum to defend their championship, once again the 76ers made it back to the NBA Playoffs and in the rematch of last year's Eastern Conference Finals, the 76ers held a 3–1 series lead over the Celtics, before selfish play and ego cost them big, as the Celtics came back to beat the 76ers in seven games. At the end of the season, the 76ers inexplicably traded Hall of Famer Chamberlain to the
Los Angeles Lakers for one arguable player, Archie Clark, and two mediocre role players, Darrell Imhoff and Jerry Chambers. The trade was one of the most mentally deficient in NBA history, and sent the Sixers into a freefall, which GM Jack Ramsay accelerated by subsequent divestiture of All Star forward Chet Walker for a series of grossly inadequate replacements.
While the rapidly declining Sixers continued to contend for the next three seasons, they never got past the second round. In 1971–72—only five years after winning the title—the Sixers finished 30–52 and missed postseason play for the first time in franchise history.
The bottom fell out in the 1972–73 season. The 76ers lost their first 15 games of the season, and a few months later set a then-record
20 game losing streak in a single season. Their record following the 20 game losing streak was 4–58, and the team at that point had just lost 34 of 35 games. The 76ers finished the season with a 9–73 record, earning the nickname from the skeptical Philadelphia media of the "Nine and 73-ers". Under Coach Roy Rubin the Sixers won 4, and lost 47. He was succeeded by player-coach Kevin Loughery, the team won 5, lost 26. This was Roy Rubin's first and last job coaching in the NBA. The 76ers finished an NBA-record 59 games behind the Atlantic Division champion Boston Celtics. The nine wins by the 1972–73 squad is the second fewest in NBA history—to the six games won by the
Providence Steamrollers in the 48 game 1947–48 season. The 73 losses, although threatened several times, remains the all-time low-water mark for any NBA franchise. The Sixers' .110 winning percentage is also the lowest in NBA history. Only six seasons earlier, the 76ers had set the NBA record for most wins in a season.
The next year, the 76ers would hire
Gene Shue as their head coach and they slowly came back. In the 1975–76 season, the 76ers got
George McGinnis from the
Indiana Pacers of the
ABA (after the Knicks tried to sign him, not knowing that the Sixers owned his rights), and with him, the 76ers were back in the playoffs after a five-year absence, and even though they lost to the
Buffalo Braves in three games, a "Doctor" would come along and get the team healthy enough to stay in perennial contention. During this period, however, one last personnel misjudgment had effects when the team used the fifth pick overall in the 1975 draft to select
Darryl Dawkins directly from high school. The immensely talented and physically imposing Dawkins seldom, if ever, lived up to his great potential in part because of a perpetual adolescence. In fact, his lack of development and some lingering back injuries limited his NBA career to 9 years, the last several of which were as a mere footnote player. In retrospect, Dawkins is probably the best example of the value of at least a few years of NCAA play before turning pro and the 76ers fans would concede that his drafting turned out to be in no one's best interest except perhaps that of his agent.
The Doc
The 1976–77 season would be memorable for the 76ers; as a result of the terms of the
ABA-NBA merger they acquired
Julius Erving from the
New York Nets, soon after the team was purchased by local philanthropist
Fitz Eugene Dixon, Jr., grandson of
George Dunton Widener and heir to the Widener fortune. With them, the 76ers began an exciting ride for the fans of Philadelphia, beating their long-time rival from Boston in a seven-game playoff to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals. There, they defeated the
Houston Rockets, led by future Sixer
Moses Malone, in six games to advance to the NBA Finals. There they would lose to former coach
Jack Ramsay and the
Bill Walton-led
Portland Trail Blazers in six games, after building a commanding 2–0 series lead.
That led to the 1977–78 motto of "We owe you one", which would ultimately backfire when they lost in the playoffs that season to the
Washington Bullets, who went on to win the NBA championship. In the next four seasons, the Sixers would fall short of the NBA Championship, even after changing coaches to former Sixers great Billy Cunningham. In the
1980 NBA Finals against the
Los Angeles Lakers, they lost, four games to two. In Game Six, rookie
Magic Johnson played center for the Lakers in place of
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (who was out because of a sprained ankle sustained in Game Five) and scored 42 points. In the 1981 Eastern Conference Finals, the 76ers opened a 3–1 series lead over the Celtics only to see Boston come back and win the series in seven games. The following season, the 76ers again faced the Celtics in the Eastern Conference Finals, and again jumped to a 3–1 series lead only to see Boston forge a 3–3 series tie. The 76ers were given little chance of winning as they faced the Celtics in Game Seven at
Boston Garden. This time, they played angry but inspired basketball, pulling away to a 120–106 victory. In the game's closing moments, the Boston Garden fans began chanting
"Beat L.A., Beat L.A."
, an incredible moment in basketball history, and although they lost in the NBA Finals, the 76ers began the 1982–83 season with great momentum. All they needed now was
Moses to lead them to the promised land of the NBA championship.
Historic 1982–83 season: "Fo', Fo', Fo'."
Harold Katz bought the 76ers from Dixon in 1982. On his watch, the final piece of the championship puzzle was completed before the 1982–83 season when they acquired center
Moses Malone from the
Houston Rockets. Led by
Hall of Famer
Julius Erving and All-Stars
Maurice Cheeks,
Andrew Toney, and
Bobby Jones they dominated the regular season, winning 65 games in what is still the second most winning year in franchise history. Malone was named League MVP, and when reporters asked how the playoffs would run, he answered, "four, four, four"—in other words, saying that the Sixers needed to win four games in each of the 3 rounds. The media misinterpreted this and assumed Moses was predicting that the Sixers would sweep all three rounds to win the title, with the minimum 12 games. Malone's accent made his boast sound like "fo', fo', fo'."
However, the Sixers backed up Malone's boast. They made a mockery of the Eastern Conference playoffs, first sweeping the
New York Knicks and then beating the
Milwaukee Bucks in five games. The Sixers went on to win their third NBA championship (and second in Philadelphia) with a four-game sweep of the Los Angeles Lakers, who had defeated them the season before. Malone was named the playoffs' MVP. The Sixers didn't quite fulfill Malone's prediction, as their run was actually "fo', fi', fo" ("four, five, four")--a loss to the Bucks in game four of the Eastern finals being the only blemish on their playoff run. Nonetheless, their 12–1 playoff record is the second-best in league history after the 2000–2001 Lakers, who went 15–1 en route to the NBA Title coincidentally beating the 76ers in the finals (Their only defeat that postseason was to the Sixers, in fact in Game 1). The Philadelphia-based group
Pieces Of A Dream had a minor hit in 1983 with the R&B song "Fo-Fi-Fo", which title was prompted by Malone's quip.
Charles in charge
After a disappointing 1983–84 season, which ended with a five-game loss to the upstart
New Jersey Nets in the first round of the playoffs,
Charles Barkley arrived in Philadelphia for the 1984–85 season. For the next eight seasons, Barkley brought delight to the Philadelphia fans thanks to his humorous and sometimes controversial ways. The 76ers returned to the Eastern Conference Finals, but lost to the
Boston Celtics in five games. Following the season,
Matt Guokas replaced Billy Cunningham as head coach, leading the Sixers to the second round of the playoffs in 1985–86, where they were defeated by the
Milwaukee Bucks in seven games.
On June 16, 1986, Katz made two of the most controversial and highly criticized personnel moves in franchise history (no mean feat in light of the Chamberlain and Shawn Bradley disasters), trading Moses Malone to Washington and the first overall pick in the 1986 NBA Draft (which had been obtained from the
San Diego Clippers in a 1979 trade for
Joe Bryant) to the
Cleveland Cavaliers. In return, the Sixers received
Roy Hinson,
Jeff Ruland, and
Cliff Robinson, none of whom played more than three seasons with the team. Cleveland, meanwhile, turned their acquired pick into future All-Star
Brad Daugherty. The 76ers returned to the playoffs in 1986–87, but were defeated in the first round by Milwaukee, three games to two. In 1987–88, with the team's record at 20–23, Guokas was fired and replaced by assistant
Jim Lynam. Lynam finished the season 16–23, and overall Philadelphia finished 36–46, failing to reach the postseason for the first time since 1974–75. Philadelphia selected
Charles Smith with its first pick in the
1988 NBA Draft, then traded his rights to the Los Angeles Clippers for their first pick,
Hersey Hawkins. In five seasons with the Sixers, Hawkins would average 19 points per game, and left the team as its all-time leader in three-point field goals attempted and made.
In 1988–89, Philadelphia returned to the playoffs after a one-year absence, but were swept in the first round by the
New York Knicks. In 1989–90, Barkley finished second in the league's MVP voting, as the 76ers won the Atlantic Division title. After defeating Cleveland in the first round of the playoffs, Philadelphia faced
Michael Jordan and the
Chicago Bulls in the second round. The 76ers fell to the Bulls in five games, and would do the same in 1991 after sweeping the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round. Some people feel the two postseason losses to Chicago were the beginning of the end of Barkley's stay in Philadelphia. In 1991–92, the 76ers missed the playoffs for the just the second time during Barkley's eight seasons in Philadelphia. On June 17, 1992, Barkley was traded to the
Phoenix Suns for
Jeff Hornacek,
Tim Perry, and
Andrew Lang, a deal that was met with harsh criticism.
The "Dark Ages"
Lynam relinquished his head coaching position to become general manager following the 1991–92 season, and hired
Doug Moe to fill the vacancy. Moe's tenure lasted just 56 games, with the Sixers posting a 19–37 record. Popular former player and longtime assistant coach
Fred Carter succeeded Moe as head coach in March 1993, but could only manage a 32–76 record at the helm. Following the 1993–94 season, the 76ers hired
John Lucas in the dual role of head coach and general manager. The enthusiastic Lucas had been successful as a head coach for the
San Antonio Spurs, and Philadelphia hoped he could breathe new life into the 76ers. It proved disastrous, as the team went 42–122 in its two seasons under Lucas. The acquisition of unproductive free agents such as
Scott Williams and
Charles Shackleford, players at the end of their careers such as
LaSalle Thompson,
Orlando Woolridge, and
Scott Skiles along with stunningly unwise high draft picks such as
Shawn Bradley and
Sharone Wright were also factors in the team's decline. In fact, Wright played in only 4 NBA seasons while Temple product
Eddie Jones—drafted 4 slots below Wright in 1994 by the L.A. Lakers—is in his 14th year as a productive NBA player.
Starting with the 1990–91 season, and ending with the 1995–96 season, the 76ers had the dubious distinction of seeing their win total decrease each year. The nadir was the 1995–96 season, when they finished with an 18–64 record, the second-worst in franchise history. It was also the second-worst record in the league that year, ahead of only the expansion
Vancouver Grizzlies but behind the
Toronto Raptors, who were also in their inaugural season. That season would turn out to be their last in the
The Spectrum. Katz, unpopular among fans since the 1986 trades, sold the team to
Comcast Spectacor, a consortium of
Philadelphia Flyers owner
Ed Snider and
Comcast Corporation, at the end of the 1995–96 season. Snider had been the Sixers' landlord since gaining control of the Spectrum in 1971.
Pat Croce, a former trainer for the Flyers and Sixers, took over as president.
Many 76ers fans call these years "The Dark Ages". However, after many years of misfortune, there was a bright spot. The team won the lottery for the top pick in the
1996 NBA Draft. Questions remained, but with the first pick, the Sixers found their "Answer":
Allen Iverson.
"The Answer"
With new ownership and Iverson in place, and the 76ers moving into the
CoreStates Center, things seemed to finally be heading in a positive direction. Croce fired Lucas as both coach and general manager.
Johnny Davis was named head coach, while Brad Greenberg took over as general manager. Iverson was named Rookie of the Year, but Philadelphia's overall improvement was minimal, as they finished with a 22–60 record. 76ers top brass felt changes had to be made after the 1996–97 season. Changes came in the form of the firings of Davis and Greenberg and the unveiling of a new 76ers team logo and jerseys. To replace Davis,
Larry Brown was hired as head coach. Known for a defense-first approach and transforming unsuccessful teams into winners by "playing the right way", Brown faced perhaps his toughest coaching challenge. He often clashed with Iverson, but the 76ers improved to 31 wins in 1997–98. In the early 1997–98 season, the Sixers traded
Jerry Stackhouse, who had been the third overall pick in the
1995 NBA Draft, to the
Detroit Pistons. In exchange, Philadelphia received
Aaron McKie and
Theo Ratliff, defensive standouts who would have an impact in the team's resurgence. The 76ers also acquired
Eric Snow from the
Seattle SuperSonics in January 1998.
Prior to the 1998–99 season, the 76ers signed
George Lynch and
Matt Geiger, but a lengthy lockout delayed the start of the season, which was shortened to 50 games. During the season, Philadelphia acquired
Tyrone Hill in a trade with Milwaukee. The team began its resurgence during this strike-shortened season, finishing with a 28–22 record and the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs, marking the first time since 1991 the team reached the postseason. In the first round, Philadelphia upset the
Orlando Magic, three games to one, before being swept by the
Indiana Pacers. The following season, the Sixers improved to 49–33, fifth in the East. Again, the Sixers won their first round series in four games, this time defeating the
Charlotte Hornets. For the second straight year, they were defeated by Indiana in the second round, this time in six games. Iverson and Brown continued to clash, and their relationship deteriorated to the point where it seemed certain Iverson would be traded. A rumored trade to the
Los Angeles Clippers fell through, but a complicated four-team deal that would've seen Iverson sent to Detroit was agreed upon, only to see it dissolve due to salary cap problems. When it became clear Iverson was staying in Philadelphia, he and Brown worked to patch things up, and the team would reap the benefits in 2000–01.
2000–01 season
During that season, the 76ers got off to a hot start by winning their first ten games, and their record would eventually swell to 41–14. Larry Brown coached the Eastern Conference All-Stars, and Allen Iverson was named MVP of the All-Star Game. Shortly before the All-Star break, Theo Ratliff was lost for the season with a wrist injury, one that would later prove to be devastating to his future career. Feeling the team needed an established center to advance deep into the playoffs, Philadelphia acquired
Dikembe Mutombo from the
Atlanta Hawks in a deal that sent Ratliff,
Nazr Mohammed,
Toni Kukoc, and
Pepe Sanchez to Atlanta (Sanchez was reacquired later in the season after the Hawks waived him) In total, the team went 56–26 en route to becoming the top seed in the Eastern Conference Playoffs. The 56 wins were tied for the second-most in the league behind San Antonio's 58. The Los Angeles Lakers also won 56, but gained a higher overall seed than the Sixers based on tiebreakers.
In the first round of the playoffs, Philadelphia faced Indiana yet again. In Game One, the 76ers wasted an 18-point lead and lost, 79–78, when
Reggie Miller hit a three-pointer in the closing seconds. Philadelphia fought back, however, and took the next three games to win the series. In the Eastern Conference Semifinals, the Sixers squared off against the Toronto Raptors and their superstar,
Vince Carter. The teams alternated wins in the first four games, with Iverson scoring 54 points in Philadelphia's Game Two victory. In Game Five, the 76ers jumped out to a 33–12 lead after the first quarter and routed the Raptors, 121–88, with Iverson contributing 52 points. Toronto won Game Six, setting the stage for Game Seven at the First Union Center. With the Sixers ahead, 88–87, Carter missed a jump shot at the buzzer to send Philadelphia into the Eastern Conference Finals against the Milwaukee Bucks. After the teams split the first two games of the series, it was learned Iverson would miss Game Three due to various injuries that had plagued him late in the season. Though many people felt Milwaukee would win easily, the 76ers kept the game close before falling, 80–74. The Sixers would win Games Four and Five before dropping Game Six. In Game Seven, the Bucks jumped out to a 34–25 second quarter lead before seldom-used reserve
Raja Bell scored 10 points to spark a 23–4 run that gave Philadelphia the lead for good. Iverson scored 44 points, and the 76ers pulled away in the second half, winning by a 108–91 score, putting them in the NBA Finals for the first time since 1983. Their opponent would be the Los Angeles Lakers, who had run up an 11–0 record in the first three rounds of the playoffs, and were expected by many to make quick work of the Sixers. Because of a seemingly meaningless loss to the Chicago Bulls in the regular season finale (both the Sixers and the Lakers finished with identical 56–26 records), the 76ers had to open a series on the road for the first time in the 2001 playoffs.
In Game One, the Lakers jumped out to an 18–5 lead, but the Sixers stormed back to take a 19-point lead in the second half. Los Angeles fought back to force a 94–94 tie at the end of regulation. The Lakers scored the first five points of the overtime period, but the 76ers went on a 13–2 run to end the game, winning by a 107–101 score. Iverson hit a go-ahead three-pointer in the extra period, and followed that with a jump shot after which he famously stepped over
Tyronn Lue after making the basket.
Eric Snow hit a running jump shot in the waning seconds with the shot clock expiring to clinch the stunning victory. Los Angeles would win Game Two, 98–89. In Game Three,
Shaquille O'Neal fouled out late in the fourth quarter, and the 76ers pulled to within a point with less than a minute to play.
Robert Horry, however, hit a three-pointer in that final minute, and the Sixers would lose, 91–86. The Lakers wrapped up the NBA title with a 100–86 win in Game Four and a 108–96 win in Game Five. The 2000–01 Sixers featured the NBA's MVP (Iverson), the NBA's coach of the year (Brown), the Defensive Player of the Year (Mutombo), and the Sixth Man of the Year (
Aaron McKie).
Another downturn
The 76ers went into the 2001–02 season with high expectations, but were able to produce only a 43–39 record, sixth in the Eastern Conference. In the first round of the playoffs, Philadelphia was defeated by the Boston Celtics, three games to two. In 2002–03, the Sixers sprinted to a 15–4 start, but a 10–20 swoon left them 25–24 at the All-Star break. After the break, the 76ers caught fire, winning nine in a row at one point, and 23 of their last 33 to finish at 48–34, earning the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs. Iverson scored 55 points in the playoff opener against the New Orleans Hornets, and the Sixers went on to win the series in six games. In the second round, the Detroit Pistons ended Philadelphia's playoff run in six games.
On Memorial Day, 2003, Brown abruptly resigned as head coach, taking over the reins in Detroit a few days later. After being turned down by
Jeff Van Gundy and
Eddie Jordan, the 76ers hired
Randy Ayers, an assistant under Brown, as their new head coach. Ayers lasted only 52 games and was fired with the team's record at 21–31.
Chris Ford took over, but the Sixers finished the season at 33–49, missing the playoffs for the first time in six years. Iverson, who clashed with Ford throughout the second half of the season, played only 48 games in a stormy, injury-plagued season. Following the season, Philadelphia native
Jim O'Brien was named head coach. Iverson was moved back to point guard and flourished, having arguably his finest season. He also impressed many with his willingness to get other players involved in the offense. During the 2004–05 season, Philadelphia acquired
Chris Webber in a trade with the
Sacramento Kings, with the hopes that the team had at long last found a consistent second scoring option to compliment Iverson.
Andre Iguodala, Philadelphia's first-round pick in the
2004 NBA Draft, was named to the All-Rookie First Team, and the Sixers returned to the
postseason with a 43–39 record. In the first round, they were defeated in five games by the eventual Eastern Conference Champion Pistons, coached by Larry Brown. Following the season, O'Brien was fired and replaced by the popular
Maurice Cheeks, who played for the team from 1978–89, and was the starting point guard for the 1983 NBA Champions. However, the coaching change did not turn around the team's fortunes. A 2–10 stretch in March doomed them to missing the playoffs for the second time in three years with a 38–44 record.
With the opening of the 2006–07 season, the Sixers started out hot, going 3–0 for the first time since making it to the Finals five years previously. However, they stumbled through the first half of the season and couldn't quite recover, finishing 35–47, good for 3rd in the Atlantic Division, and 9th in the Eastern Conference (tied with Indiana).
On Tuesday, December 5, 2006, disappointed with the direction the team was headed, Allen Iverson gave the 76ers management an ultimatum:
find players who will help support me or trade me.
This was confirmed via an in-game interview with team owner,
Ed Snider.
Moving on from Iverson
On December 19, 2006,
Allen Iverson, along with
Ivan McFarlin, were sent to the
Denver Nuggets in exchange for guard
Andre Miller, forward
Joe Smith, and two first-round draft picks.
On January 11, Sixers GM
Billy King announced that the Sixers and aging forward
Chris Webber had agreed to a buyout of the remainder of his contract. The Sixers would pay Webber $36 million over the next 1½ seasons, which is $7 million less than he would have been paid to play. After the buyout, the Sixers waived Webber, making him a free agent. Webber signed with the
Detroit Pistons shortly thereafter.
The Sixers drafted
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets SF
Thaddeus Young with the 12th pick, traded with the
Miami Heat for 21st pick
Colorado State PF
Jason Smith, traded with the
Portland Trail Blazers for 42nd pick
Vanderbilt SG/SF
Derrick Byars, and then finally traded with the
Utah Jazz for
Providence PF
Herbert Hill.
On December 4, 2007, the Sixers fired
Billy King and replaced him with Nets GM,
Ed Stefanski.
[4]
This season, the Sixers revamped their homecourt design. The logo based on their home uniforms is placed on center court, while the primary logo is placed on the right side of the baseline. The streaking ball on the left side of the court is eliminated, and the team website is placed on the sideline.
The Sixers clinched a playoff berth with a win over the
Atlanta Hawks on April 4, 2008. It was their first postseason appearance since 2005, as well as the first in the post-Iverson era. However, they were eliminated by the Pistons in six games, with Detroit winning the series 4–2. Even with this elimination, many fans considered this to be a successful season, considering that the Sixers were 12 games under .500 in early February and went on to have a run that led them to the playoffs and a 40–42 record.
A "Brand" New Era
On July 9, 2008, the 76ers signed
power forward Elton Brand to a 5 year, $79.795 million-dollar contract.
[5] They were able to sign him after trading Rodney Carney
[6], and renouncing their rights to all their unrestricted free agents.
[7] Brand had originally opted out of his contract with the
Los Angeles Clippers, looking to re-sign with them.
[8] But Elton saw that the 76ers offered him more money (he regarded their offer as the "Philly-Max"), and a better chance at winning an NBA Championship playing in the
Eastern Conference. This move has been the subject of controversy since there were rumors that he and
Baron Davis had made a friendly agreement to play together for the Clippers.
[9] Later on the team signed free agent
point guard Royal Ivey of the
Milwaukee Bucks,
[10] Kareem Rush from the
Indiana Pacers,
[11] and then signed former Sixer
Theo Ratliff after
Jason Smith's injury.
Donyell Marshall was signed on September 2, 2008 after he stated that he wanted to go back home to his agent and end his career in the city of brotherly love.
[12] Rush, Ivey, Ratliff & Marshall were all payed the veteran's minimum wage because of their one dimensional play, but they will be contributors to a team on the rise. During the offseason they also resigned valuable
restricted free agents
Louis Williams for 5yr/$25 million
[13] and Andre Iguodala for 6yr/$80 million
[14].
However the Sixers couldn't find the form that pushed them to the playoffs last year. The Sixers started the year with an uninspiring 9–14 record before firing head coach
Maurice Cheeks on December 13. Assistant GM
Tony DiLeo took over and the Sixers gradually improved. They finished the season with a 41–41 record, with an 32–27 record under DiLeo. Unfortunately, Brand's first season with the Sixers ended early with a right shoulder injury that required surgery. Despite the loss of Brand, the Sixers earned a playoff berth with a 90–95 win against the Detroit Pistons on April 4, 2009, at home.
In the first round, they faced the
Orlando Magic. Three of the first four games of the series provided late-game heroics.
Andre Iguodala and
Thaddeus Young made game-winning shots in Games 1 and 3, respectively, while Orlando's
Hedo Turkoglu provided the game-winner in Game 4. Just like in the previous year's playoffs, the Sixers led 2–1 after three games. But the Magic would go on to win three straight to eliminate the Sixers from the playoffs.
It was also during the season that the Sixers played one home game at their old home, the
Wachovia Spectrum. The Sixers won 104–101 over the
Chicago Bulls on March 13, 2009. The game was played to provide the final curtain call on the Spectrum, which was scheduled to be imploded on New Year's Eve 2009. The Sixers drafted UCLA point guard Jrue Holiday with the 17 pick. Philadelphia has had consistent improvement in their win column due in part to the development of guards Willle Green and Louis Willams, and Center Sam Dalembert. The Sixers traded power forward Reggie Evans to the Toronto Raptors for three point specialist, small forward Jason Kapono, who has won two three point shoot outs in the last three years.
Team logos
Season-by-season records
Home arenas
Convention Hall and Philadelphia Arena (1963–1967)
The Spectrum (1967–1996)
Wachovia Center (1996–Present)
Players
Basketball Hall of Famers
- Charles Barkley
- Al Cervi
- Wilt Chamberlain
- Billy Cunningham
- Julius Erving
- Hal Greer
- Bailey Howell
- Earl Lloyd (inducted as a contributor, not as a player)
- Moses Malone
- Harvey Pollack (Statistician)
- Dolph Schayes
Retired numbers
- 2 Moses Malone, C, 1982–1986 & 1993–1994 (never officially retired, but taken out of circulation)
- 6 Julius Erving, F, 1976–1987
- 10 Maurice Cheeks, G, 1978–1989; Head Coach, 2005–2008
- 13 Wilt Chamberlain, C, 1965–1968 (also Philadelphia native, and Philadelphia Warriors, 1959–62)
- 15 Hal Greer, G, 1963–1973 (1958–1973 if Syracuse Nationals service is included)
- 24 Bobby Jones, F, 1978–1986
- 32 Billy Cunningham, F,1965–1976; Head Coach, 1977–1985
- 34 Charles Barkley, F, 1984–1992
- Microphone – Dave Zinkoff, public-address announcer, 1963–1985 (also Warriors, 1946–1962)
Erving, Chamberlain, Cunningham, Barkley and Sonny Hill (team executive and director of youth basketball programs in the city) have also been inducted into the
Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame.
Current roster
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Coaches and others
Basketball Hall of Famers
- Daniel Biasone (contributor – founding owner and principal advocate of shot clock)
- Chuck Daly (coach)
- Alex Hannum (coach)
- Jack Ramsay (coach)
- Larry Brown (coach)
- Benny Borgmann (coach) 1946–48
Individual awards
All-time Leading Scorer
NBA MVP of the Year
- Wilt Chamberlain – 1966, 1967, 1968
- Julius Erving – 1981
- Moses Malone – 1983
- Allen Iverson – 2001
NBA Finals MVP
NBA Defensive Player of the Year
NBA Rookie of the Year
NBA Sixth Man of the Year
- Bobby Jones – 1983
- Aaron McKie – 2001
NBA Most Improved Player of the Year
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NBA Coach of the Year
- Dolph Schayes – 1966
- Larry Brown – 2001
All-NBA First Team
- Dolph Schayes – 1952, 1953, 1954, 1955, 1957, 1958
- Wilt Chamberlain – 1966, 1967, 1968
- Bill Cunningham – 1969, 1970, 1971
- George McGinnis – 1976
- Julius Erving – 1978, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983
- Moses Malone – 1983, 1984
- Charles Barkley – 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991
- Allen Iverson – 1999, 2001, 2005
All-NBA Second Team
- Al Cervi – 1950
- Dolph Schayes – 1950, 1951, 1956, 1959, 1960, 1961
- Paul Seymour – 1954, 1955
- Larry Costello – 1961
- Hal Greer – 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969
- Wilt Chamberlain – 1965
- Bill Cunningham – 1972
- George McGinnis – 1977
- Julius Erving – 1977
- Charles Barkley – 1986, 1987, 1992
- Allen Iverson – 2000, 2002, 2003
- Dikembe Mutombo – 2001
All-NBA Third Team
- Dikembe Mutombo – 2002
- Allen Iverson – 2006
NBA All-Defensive First Team
- Bobby Jones – 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984
- Caldwell Jones – 1981, 1982
- Maurice Cheeks – 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986
- Moses Malone – 1983
- Dikembe Mutombo – 2001
NBA All-Defensive Second Team
- Bobby Jones – 1985
- Maurice Cheeks – 1987
- Rick Mahorn – 1990
- Theo Ratliff – 1999
- Dikembe Mutombo – 2002
- Eric Snow – 2003
NBA All-Rookie First Team
- Lucious Jackson – 1965
- Billy Cunningham – 1966
- Fred Boyd – 1973
- Charles Barkley – 1985
- Hersey Hawkins – 1989
- Jerry Stackhouse – 1996
- Allen Iverson – 1997
- Andre Iguodala – 2005
NBA All-Rookie Second Team
- Clarence Weatherspoon – 1993
- Shawn Bradley – 1994
- Sharone Wright – 1995
- Tim Thomas – 1998
- Thaddeus Young – 2008
See also
- South Philadelphia Sports Complex
References
- The Nats
- nba.com/history, Top 10 Teams in NBA History, accessed January 16, 2007
- NBA Encyclopedia Playoff Edition: The Best Team Ever
- NBA's 76ers Fire General Manager King, Hire Nets' Stefanski
- http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-clippers9-2008jul09,0,7626268.story
- http://www.google.com/url?sa=U&start=11&q=http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2008/Jul/16/former-ti
- http://www.philly.com/philly/sports/20080717_Sixers_GM_Stefanski_in_talks_to_re-sign_Iguodala.html
- http://www.google.com/url?sa=U&start=5&q=http://blog.cleveland.com/sports/2008/07/baron_davis_to_sig
- http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-clippers4-2008jul04,0,3694098.story
- http://www.google.com/url?sa=U&start=2&q=http://www.nba.com/sixers/news/royal_ivey_080728.html&usg=A
- [1]
- http://www.philly.com/dailynews/sports/20080821_Ratliff_returns_to_Sixers_with_playoff_goals.html
- http://nationalpost.pa-sportsticker.com/default.aspx?s=nba-news-display&nid=A17648201217888519A
- http://www.philly.com/inquirer/sports/20080814_76ers__Iguodala_agree_on_6-year_deal.html