Philadelphia 76ers: 15 greatest NBA playoff moments

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Moses Malone, Julius Erving, Billy Cunningham, Philadelphia 76ers /

1. 1983 championship run

One needs to go back 36 years to revisit the Sixers’ last NBA championship. It was a while ago, but remains fresh in the minds of those who experienced it. The Sixers were competitive throughout the late 1970s and early 1980s, but it didn’t culminate until a dominant 1982-83 campaign.

Several moments on this list came from the 1983 Finals run — Moses Malone’s famous prediction, Maurice Cheeks’ late-game dunk and Julius Erving’s dagger-setting performance. It was that kind of season for the Sixers. Just a lot of memorable, all-time moments.

The Sixers were always able to compete with Erving as the headliner, but something rather large changed in 1982-83 — Malone arrived. Not only did he assert himself as the team’s best player, but Malone won NBA MVP rather convincingly. He went on the win NBA Finals MVP as well, averaging 25.8 points, 18.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.5 blocks per contest during the four-game sweep of the Los Angeles Lakers

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Adding Malone to the mix gave Philadelphia another gear, which propelled them to a historic regular season and playoff stint. Malone’s ‘fo, fo, fo’ prediction was just one game off, meaning the Sixers needed a mere 13 games to claim the title.

For such a historic franchise, it’s almost odd to have such a long time between championships. But the Sixers haven’t been able to recreate their 1983 success, with Charles Barkley, Allen Iverson and others never getting over the hump.

The Sixers are beginning their pursuit yet again, though, as ‘The Process’ now enters its most competitive stage. Joel Embiid, Tobias Harris, Jimmy Butler, J.J. Redick and Ben Simmons rank among the most talented starting fives in recent memory. Perhaps the Sixers can get back to the promised land sooner rather than later?

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1983 was a special year for Philadelphia and deserves the top spot on this list. But the Sixers, now up 3-1 on the Brooklyn Nets in round one, could add more special moments in the near future.