Philadelphia 76ers: Top 10 moments of 2018

5. Sixers eliminate the Heat

There’s a lot to unpack from this game.

I cannot recall ever despising a team as much as I despised the Miami Heat during that series. They drove me nuts. They played dirty, they played like bullies, they did anything they could to try and throw a young Sixers team out of its rhythm.

That’s not to say they weren’t a talented team, but playing in that manner was the only way Miami was going to have a chance of winning that series. So when the Sixers finally closed them out in a game they controlled from start to finish, it was extremely satisfying.

With that Game 5 win, the Sixers won their first playoff series since 2012, when the Doug Collins and Andre Iguodala-led Sixers upset the top-seeded Chicago Bulls. As the clock hit triple zeroes, you couldn’t help but think about how far this team and this organization had come.

It wasn’t long ago that the thought of having a team that could consistently compete in a playoff-type atmosphere was nothing more than a pipe dream for Sixers fans. To now sit back and realize that this is a team that has a chance to be a legitimate title contender let alone a playoff team frankly was overwhelming.

But if you ask me, by far the best moment of that whole day had very little to do with the game.

Prior to tip-off, rumors began to swirl that Meek Mill, who had unfairly been sent back to prison the previous November, was to be released that day.

That alone would be cool enough. Then there were murmurs that not only was he going to be transported by helicopter straight to the game that night, but if he got there in time, he was slated to be the pregame bell-ringer.

Insane. It literally seemed too good to be true.

But that’s exactly how it went down. Meek flew in right on schedule, rang the bell, and had court-side seats to a series-clinching game for his hometown team.

Meek has been through quite a lot the last few years. Too much, to be honest. I can’t even imagine having to deal with what he’s had to deal with. But seeing him finally free and, most importantly, happy and enjoying life taking in a Sixers game on that night was really something.