With the NBA in an indefinite hiatus due to COVID-19, we continue our day-by-day look back at the history of the Philadelphia 76ers. We continue down our path into Sixers history every day as we look to fill the void left by the absence of basketball.
The Sixers of 2006 were a bit of a disappointment, but by this point of the season, they were still in the thick of the playoff race and on this April night in Chicago, Allen Iverson’s competitive nature lifted the Sixers to a win. Both the Sixers and the Bulls were battling for a final playoff spot in the East and they needed this win in the worst way.
April 8, 2006
The Sixers were short-handed heading into this one as Chris Webber had withdrawn shortly before tipoff with a bad back. With the season on the line, Philadelphia would need their leader to have a big game and that’s exactly what they did.
Iverson had 39 points on 12-for-29 shooting and he was also 3-for-5 from deep to lead the Sixers to an 89-75 win over the Bulls on the road to stop a three-game losing skid. Samuel Dalembert added 12 points and 14 rebounds and Andre Iguodala had 10 points and seven rebounds in support of Iverson’s big game.
Afterward, Iverson told reporters:
We knew we were going to be short-handed, being that Chris
wasn’t playing, and other guys stepped up and played big for us.
The Sixers, of course, would miss out on the playoffs with a 38-44 record. Chicago would actually surge into the playoffs as the 7 seed at a 41-41 record, but they would fall to the eventual champion Miami Heat in Round 1 in six tough games. [lawrence-related id=29037,29021,29013]