The Philadelphia 76ers are a professional basketball team in the National Basketball Association (the NBA).  The Philadelphia 76ers play in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference with four other teams: the Boston Celtics, the New York Knicks, the New Jersey Nets and the Toronto Raptors.  76ers tickets will surely be hard to come by during the 2010-2011 NBA schedule.

76ers 2009-2010 Outlook

The Philadelphia 76ers won only 27 games during the 2009-2010 NBA season, finishing in 4th place in the Atlantic Division with a 27-55 record.  The Philadelphia 76ers received solid production from forward Andre Iguodala and center Samuel Dalembert once again.  Iguodala led the team with a 17.1 points per game average and a 5.8 assists per game average.  Dalembert led the team with a 9.6 rebounds per game average.  Louis Williams was the 76ers 2nd highest scorer with a 14.0 points per game average.  Thaddeus Young also put forth a solid year with 13.8 points per game and 5.2 rebounds per game.  Star Elton Brand finally put injury issues behind him and played 76 of the 76ers 2 games.  But his numbers were not great - 13.1 points per game and 6.1 rebounds per game. 

The 76ers drafted Evan Turner from Ohio State with the 2nd pick of the 2010 NBA Draft.  The 76ers hope that Turner can grow and mature as the season progresses and complement the talents of Iguodala, Williams and Young and the newly acquired Darius Songaila and Andres Nocioni.  If the Philadelphia 76ers can play spirited, team-oriented basketball, they have the pieces in place to make some headway in the near future.  Get your 76ers NBA tickets at the Wells Fargo Center before it's too late.

History

The Philadelphia 76ers are the oldest professional basketball franchise in the United States.  The franchise started in 1939 as the Syracuse Nationals.  In 1946, the Syracuse Nationals joined the National Basketball League, a largely Midwest-based professional basketball association.  In 1949 the National Basketball League merged with the Basketball Association of America to form the National Basketball Association, today’s NBA.  From 1939 through 1963, the franchise played all of its games in Syracuse, New York and was known as the Syracuse Nationals.  In 1963, for financial reasons, the franchise moved the team from Syracuse to Philadelphia and they have played in Philadelphia ever since. 

The Philadelphia 76ers franchise has won 3 NBA Championships during the team’s history.  The Philadelphia 76ers advanced to the NBA Finals in three of the 1st six years of the NBA’s existence.  The Syracuse Nationals lost to the Minneapolis Lakers (now the Los Angeles Lakers) 4-2 in the 1st ever NBA Finals in 1950 and then again to the Minneapolis Lakers 4-3 in the 1954 NBA Finals.  Their fortune changed in 1955, as the franchise recorded its 1st NBA Championship with a 4-3 NBA Finals victory over the Fort Wayne Pistons (now the Detroit Pistons) in 1956.  The franchise did not reach another NBA Finals for over 10 years.  In 1967, the Philadelphia 76ers defeated the San Francisco Warriors (now the Golden State Warriors) 4-2 to capture the franchise’s 2nd NBA Championship.  The Philadelphia 76ers lost in 3 more NBA Championship Series in 1977 (to the Portland Trailblazers), in 1980 (to the Los Angeles Lakers), and in 1982 (to the Los Angeles Lakers), before recording the franchise’s 3rd and final NBA Championship in 1983.  In 1983, the Philadelphia 76ers achieved revenge against the Los Angeles Lakers with a 4-0 Championship series sweep behind the dominating play of Moses Malone, who had been named the NBA’s regular season MVP.  Malone, along with fellow Hall of Famer Julius “Dr. J” Erving and NBA All-Stars Maurice Cheeks, Andrew Toney and Bobby Jones, convincingly marched through the 1983 playoffs winning 12 of the 13 games they played.  Only one other team has ever lost only 1 playoff game en route to an NBA Championship – the 2000-2001 Los Angeles Lakers who went 15-1 with a 4-1 rout of the Philadelphia 76ers in the NBA Finals.  From 1984 through 1992, out-spoken forward Charles Barkley was the hero of the Philadelphia 76ers franchise, but he only led his team to the NBA Eastern Conference Finals once – a 4-1 loss to the Boston Celtics in his 1st year on the team.  The Philadelphia 76ers did not reach the NBA playoffs from 1992 through 1998, but following the 1998-1999 NBA season, the Philadelphia 76ers ran off a string of 5 straight playoff appearances behind the strong play of superstar guard Allen Iverson.  But once again, the Philadelphia 76ers could not get over the hump, advancing to the NBA Finals only once – a 4-1 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2001 NBA Finals.

The Philadelphia 76ers retired Hal Greer’s #15 on November 19, 1976; Billy Cunningham’s #32 on December 17, 1976; David Zinkoff’s “Microphone” on March 25, 1986 (the only non-player to be honored in this fashion); Bobby Jones’ #24 on November 7, 1986; Julius Erving’s #6 on April 18, 1988; Wilt Chamberlain’s #13 on March 18, 1991; Maurice Cheek’s #10 on February 6, 1995; Charles Barkley’s #34 on March 30, 2001.

76ers TV/Radio

All Philadelphia 76ers basketball games can be seen on Comcast SportsNet and WPSG (UPN 57).  NBC, ESPN and TNT may also televise Philadelphia 76ers games based on the popularity of the game.  Tune into 610 WIP (the Sixers Radio Network) on your AM dial to catch each Philadelphia 76ers basketball game on the radio.

 

The Philadelphia 76ers play their home games at the Wells Fargo Center, formerly the Wachovia Center.  Wells Fargo officially took over naming rights on July 1, 2010 and the new Wells Fargo Center sign was completed on September 14, 2010.  The Wells Frago Center was also previously known as the CoreStates Center and the First Union Center. 

The Wells Fargo Center stands on the southeast corner of the South Philadelphia Sports Complex, which also includes Citizens Bank Park – the home of the Philadelphia Phillies of Major League Baseball – and Lincoln Financial Field – the home of the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League.  The Wells Fargo Center holds a capacity of 21,600 devoted die-hard Philadelphia 76ers fans.  In addition to hosting all 76ers home games, the Wells Fargo Center hosts the home games for the Philadelphia Flyers of the NHL, the Philadelphia Wings of the National Lacrosse League and the Philadelphia Soul of the Arena Football League.   The Wells Fargo Center has also played host to numerous memorable and historic concerts and boxing events, including the 1996 World Cup of Hockey, the 1998 U.S. Figure Skating Championships, the 1998 National Lacrosse League Championship, the 1999 Wrestlemania XV, the 2000 Republican National Convention, the 2002 NBA All-Star Game, and the WWE’s Royal Rumble in 2004 and Survivor Series in 2006.  The Wells Fargo Center also hosted the Men’s NCAA Basketball Tournament’s East Regional in 2001, the Men’s NCAA Basketball Tournament 1st and 2nd rounds in 2006, and is slated to host the Men’s NCAA Basketball Tournament 1st and 2nd rounds in 2009.

Stadium: Wells Fargo Center
                 3601 S. Broad Street
                 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19148

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2007-2008 76ers
2009-2010 76ers