The Philadelphia 76ers can trace their franchise's history back to the origins of the NBA and precursor BAA, then known as the Syracuse Nationals before relocating to the City of Brotherly Love. The Sixers, due to their long history and three championships, therefore also have several rival franchises from which to choose.
Here are the Sixers' top five rivals.
5. Golden State Warriors
The history between the Golden State Warriors and Sixers stretches back when the two franchises went by different names and even played in different cities. Before relocating to the Bay Area, the Warriors were the Sixers' professional basketball team from 1946-1962, eventually going to San Francisco and taking Wilt Chamberlain with them.
The Nationals moved to Philly in 1963 to fill the gap left by the Warriors. Prior to the two separate relocations, the Nationals (Sixers) and Warriors matched up nine times over a dozen years in the early NBA's postseason, with the Sixers owning a slight 5-4 advantage. Most prominently, the Sixers took down the San Francisco Warriors in 1967 Finals to take home the franchise's first title in Philly.
4. Indiana Pacers
Most of the rivalry between the Sixers and Indiana comes from three consecutive matchups in the postseason from 1999-2001 when the Pacers were a veteran team hell-bent on competing in the East following the New York Knicks' decline and Michael Jordan out of the picture. Meanwhile, the Sixers were led by then-young blossoming star point guard Allen Iverson.
Iverson and the Sixers lost in two-out-of-three matchups with the Pacers and the two franchises alternated in 2000-01 as Finals foes for the ongoing threepeat champion Lakers. Philly first lost to Indiana in the 1999 Eastern Conference semi-finals before meeting again the next year. Then, in 2001, the Sixers finally took down Reggie Miller and Co. in the first round.
3. Milwaukee Bucks
The Milwaukee Bucks and Sixers have a tangled web of history, appearing against each other in the postseason nine times—the most in Milwaukee's franchise history.
They haven't met since the 2001 playoffs, which saw Iverson and the Sixers narrowly fend off the Bucks in seven games en route to their most recent Finals appearance. Prior to that, though, the rivalry is rich due to meeting six times in seven years in the 1980's. Sidney Moncrief and the Bucks were often the early competition for Philadelphia as they frequently contended for a title during the decade of Bird and Magic.
2. Los Angeles Lakers
Both the Lakers and Sixers are two of the NBA's most iconic franchises and have been embattled in six postseason matchups along with sharing ownership over Chamberlain's legacy with the Warriors. Philly and L.A. competed for a championship in the Finals three times over four years in the early '80s, with the Sixers sadly only taking home one title in 1983.
The Sixers and Lakers later enflamed their rivalry in 2001, which saw Iverson's closest shot at a title dashed when the powerhouse L.A. squad, led by Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant, win in five games after AI's step over sealed an upset Game 1 win.
1. Boston Celtics
The Celtics are clearly Philadelphia's No. 1 rival as the two storied franchise go way back. The Celtics and Sixers, both home to east coast thriving metropolitans and key staging grounds for the American Revolution, too, were frequent foes during the dynasty Boston team led by shot-blocking aficionado Bill Russell in the 1950's and '60s. The Celtics and Sixers, the latter of which were led by Hal Greer, met in the playoffs 20 times overall over the last three quarters of a century—and 12 times in 17 years when Boston won 11 titles.
The Hall of Fame center matchup between Russell and Chamberlain will be a fixture in the early NBA, a table-setter for any marquee individual matchup between teams that staked the early brilliance of the game of basketball.
The Celtics and Sixers later matched up four times in the span of five years in the first half of the 1980's with Julius Erving and Moses Malone headlining a Philadelphia team against Larry Bird and Boston. Despite the success the Sixers had against Bird and the Celtics—winning three times out of four—they were often knocked down by the Lakers.
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