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.
This edition takes us back to the “Run with Us” version of the Sixers as they continued down their surprising path to the playoffs. The Sixers were hosting the vaunted Detroit Pistons in an April matchup that was much bigger for Philadelphia than it was for Detroit. While the Sixers had already clinched a playoff spot, they had to try and get a solid seed while the Pistons were just warming up for the postseason.
April 9, 2008
The Pistons had already earned the 2 seed in the East and they were down a starter in Richard Hamilton and the four starters who did play did not play their regular minutes. This was an opportunity for the Sixers to get the job done and keep their hot streak going.
Andre Iguodala had 25 points, six assists, five rebounds, and five steals, Samuel Dalembert had 20 points and 13 rebounds, and Willie Green had 15 points. It all resulted in 101-94 win over the Pistons that allowed Philadelphia to move into the 6 seed and they had won their 22nd game in their last 30.
Despite all of that, the Sixers had lost three in a row coming into this one. Afterward, Iguodala told reporters:
It’s always good to bounce back from a loss. We were a little emotional coming into the Atlanta game after finding out we made it to the playoffs. I still felt like we should have won that game, but it’s still good to get the win tonight.
The Sixers would finish up the 2007-08 season with a 40-42 record and head into the playoffs as the 7 seed. They would take on these Pistons in Round 1 and they would win Game 1 on the road and then blowout Detroit in Game 3 before the Pistons regrouped and won three straight to eliminate the Sixers. [lawrence-related id=29108,29091,29081]