Philadelphia 76ers are a professional basketball team that plays in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The team competes in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference. The 76ers—also known as the Sixers—play their games in the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia.
The 76ers entered the NBA in 1949-1950 as the Syracuse (New York) Nationals. The team moved to Philadelphia for the 1963-1964 season. During its years in Syracuse, the team reached the NBA finals three times, in 1949-1950, 1953-1954, and 1954-1955, winning the NBA title in 1955. Those teams were led by forward Dolph Schayes, one of the greatest players in NBA history.
The 76ers won the division championship three consecutive seasons from 1965 through 1968 and won the NBA championship in 1966-1967. That team ranks among the greatest in NBA history. It included center Wilt Chamberlain; forwards Lucious Jackson, Billy Cunningham, and Chet Walker; and guards Hal Greer and Larry Costello.
From 1975 through 1987, Philadelphia never finished lower than second in its division and reached the NBA finals in 1976-1977, 1979-1980, 1981-1982, and 1982-1983. Those teams were led by Julius Erving, one of the most exciting players in NBA history. Other stars during the 1980’s included forwards Bobby Jones and Charles Barkley and guard Maurice Cheeks. Erving, together with star center Moses Malone, led the team to the NBA title in 1983.
Philadelphia had several losing seasons during the 1990’s but won its division title in 2000-2001 under coach Larry Brown and reached the NBA finals. That team was led by high-scoring guard Allen Iverson and center Dikembe Mutombo. Philadelphia made the playoffs six times from 2001-2002 through 2010-2011, losing in the first round five times. During the 2013-2014 season, the 76ers lost 26 consecutive games, tying the NBA record at the time. Philadelphia won only 10 games during the 2015-2016 season. However, the team, led by center Joel Embiid, won more than 50 games in the 2017-2018, 2018-2019, 2021-2022, and 2022-2023 seasons. The team won a division title in the 2020-2021 season.
