Allen Ezail Iverson is an American former professional basketball player. Nicknamed "the Answer", he played 14 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) at both the shooting guard and point guard positions. Iverson won NBA Rookie of the Year Award in 1997 and was an 11-time NBA All-Star, won the All-Star game MVP award in 2001 and 2005, and was the NBA's Most Valuable Player (MVP) in 2001. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2016. In October 2021, he was named to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team. Iverson is often regarded as one of the greatest scorers and one of the most influential players in NBA history.
Richard Preston Carlisle is an American basketball coach and former player who is the head coach for the Indiana Pacers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He has previously served as head coach of the Detroit Pistons and Dallas Mavericks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). As a player, Carlisle played for the Boston Celtics, New York Knicks, and New Jersey Nets. He is also one of only eleven people to win an NBA championship both as a player and as a coach.
Jamal Mashburn Sr. is an American entrepreneur and former professional basketball player. Nicknamed the "Monster Mash", Mashburn was a prolific scorer as a small forward in his 12 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA), with a career scoring average of 19.1 points per game.
Maurice Edward Cheeks is an American professional basketball coach and former player who serves as assistant coach for the Chicago Bulls of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He has also served as head coach of the Portland Trail Blazers, Philadelphia 76ers, and Detroit Pistons. Cheeks was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a player in 2018.
Robert Allen McAdoo Jr. is an American former professional basketball player and coach. He played 14 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA), where he was a five-time NBA All-Star and named the NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) in 1975. He won two NBA championships with the Los Angeles Lakers during their Showtime era in the 1980s. In 2000, McAdoo was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame. He was named to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team in 2021.
Aaron Fitzgerald McKie is an American basketball coach and former professional basketball player who played 14 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He is currently the special advisor for athletics at his alma mater Temple University. From 2019 until 2023 he served as the head coach for the Temple men's basketball team. Selected by the Portland Trail Blazers 17th overall in the 1994 NBA draft, McKie spent time as a point guard, shooting guard or small forward throughout his professional playing career from 1994 to 2007.
The 1996 NBA draft was the 50th draft in the National Basketball Association (NBA). It was held on June 26, 1996 at Continental Airlines Arena in East Rutherford, New Jersey. In this draft, NBA teams took turns selecting college basketball players and other first-time eligible players, such as players from high schools and non-North American leagues. The Vancouver Grizzlies had the highest probability to win the NBA draft lottery, but since they were an expansion team along with the Toronto Raptors, they were not allowed to select first in this draft. The team with the second-highest probability, the Philadelphia 76ers, won the lottery and obtained the first selection. The Toronto Raptors and the Vancouver Grizzlies were second and third, respectively.
Rex Andrew Walters is an American professional basketball coach and former player who serves as an assistant coach for the Charlotte Hornets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Previously, he was the associate head coach at Wake Forest University under Danny Manning. Prior to Wake Forest, he spent time at Nevada under Eric Musselman. He has made head coaching stops with the Grand Rapid Drive, the University of San Francisco and Florida Atlantic University.
The 1996–97 NBA season was the 51st season of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The league used this season to celebrate its 50th anniversary, which included the unveiling of the league's list of its 50 greatest players. This particular season featured what has since been acknowledged as one of the most talented rookie-classes, featuring the debuts of Allen Iverson, Ray Allen, Kobe Bryant, Steve Nash, Jermaine O'Neal, Ben Wallace and Stephon Marbury. The season ended with the Chicago Bulls defeating the Utah Jazz 4 games to 2 in the NBA Finals to win the franchise's 5th championship.
Tim O'Connor James is a retired American professional basketball player and United States Army specialist and former head coach of the Vance-Granville Community College men's basketball team. In a three-year National Basketball Association career, he played for the Miami Heat, the Charlotte Hornets and the Philadelphia 76ers. He also played professional basketball in Japan, Turkey and Israel.
The 2001 NBA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 2000-01 season. The tournament concluded with the Western Conference champion Los Angeles Lakers defeating the Eastern Conference champion Philadelphia 76ers 4 games to 1. Shaquille O'Neal was named NBA Finals MVP for the second straight year.
The 2007–08 Philadelphia 76ers season was the 69th season of the franchise, 59th in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Sixers finished the regular season at 40-42. In the first round of the playoffs, they lost to the Detroit Pistons in six games.
The 2004–05 Philadelphia 76ers season was the sixty-sixth season of the franchise and the fifty-sixth in the National Basketball Association (NBA).
The 2003–04 NBA season was the 76ers' 65th season, and their 55th in the National Basketball Association. During the offseason, the Sixers acquired All-Star forward Glenn Robinson from the Atlanta Hawks and rookie Kyle Korver, who was drafted by the New Jersey Nets in the 2003 NBA draft. After Larry Brown left to become head coach of the Detroit Pistons, the Sixers hired Randy Ayers as his replacement. However, at midseason, Ayers was fired after a 21–31 start, and interim head coach Chris Ford took over for the rest of the season. Superstar guard Allen Iverson had a rough year in which he had clashed with coaches and skipped a number of practices. Despite Iverson playing only 48 games due to injuries, he still was voted to start in the 2004 NBA All-Star Game. Robinson finished second on the team in scoring averaging 16.6 points per game, but played just 42 games due to ankle and elbow injuries.
The Philadelphia 76ers are an American basketball team currently playing in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The 76ers are third in NBA history in wins and playoff appearances.
The 1999–2000 NBA season was the 76ers' 51st season in the National Basketball Association, and 37th season in Philadelphia. During the off-season, the 76ers acquired Billy Owens from the Orlando Magic, and signed free agent Bruce Bowen. The team also replaced center Matt Geiger with forward Tyrone Hill as the team's starting power forward. The Sixers lost their first three games and got off to an 11–12 start, as Allen Iverson missed 12 games due to a broken thumb. However, the team played above .500 as the season progressed, holding a 27–22 record at the All-Star break. At midseason, the team traded Owens and second-year guard Larry Hughes to the Golden State Warriors, and traded Bowen to the Chicago Bulls in exchange for Toni Kukoč in a three-team trade. However, Bowen never played for the Bulls and was released to free agency, and signed with the Miami Heat. The Sixers posted a 7-game winning streak in March, and won seven of their final nine games. The team finished third in the Atlantic Division with a 49–33 record.
The 2001–02 NBA season was the 76ers 53rd season in the National Basketball Association, and 39th season in Philadelphia. The 76ers were coming off of an NBA Finals defeat to the Los Angeles Lakers, in which they won Game 1, but lost the next 4 games. During the off-season, the team re-acquired forward Sixers forward Derrick Coleman from the Charlotte Hornets in a three-team trade, acquired Matt Harpring from the Cleveland Cavaliers, acquired Vonteego Cummings from the Golden State Warriors, and signed free agent Derrick McKey midway through the season.
The 2002–03 NBA season was the 76ers 54th season in the National Basketball Association, and 40th season in Philadelphia. During the off-season, the Sixers acquired Keith Van Horn and former 76ers center Todd MacCulloch from the New Jersey Nets; Van Horn was originally drafted by the Sixers as the second pick in the 1997 NBA draft. The Sixers got off to a fast start winning 15 of their first 19 games, but would then lose 14 of their next 18 games, holding a 25–24 record at the All-Star break. In December, the team acquired Kenny Thomas from the Houston Rockets in a three-team trade. The Sixers improved on their last season posting a nine-game winning streak at midseason, finishing second in the Atlantic Division with a 48–34 record, with the #4 seed in the Eastern Conference.
Joel Hans Embiid is a Cameroonian professional basketball player for the Philadelphia 76ers of the National Basketball Association (NBA), who also holds French and American citizenship. After one year of college basketball with the Kansas Jayhawks, he was drafted third overall by the 76ers in the 2014 NBA draft. The 7-foot (2.1 m) Embiid is a six-time NBA All-Star, a five-time member of the All-NBA Team and a three-time member of the All-Defensive Team. He was named the NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) in 2023.
Zhaire Jahi-ihme Smith is an American professional basketball player for the Cleveland Charge of the NBA G League. He played college basketball for Texas Tech.
