Honoring the Philadelphia 76ers on their 40th Anniversary in Philadelphia.

WHEREAS, The Philadelphia 76ers came to Philadelphia from Syracuse, New York in 1963 shortly after the Warriors abandoned Philadelphia for San Francisco; and

WHEREAS, The NBA approved the franchise move to Philadelphia on May 22, 1963 and the franchise then held a contest to name the club and on August 6, 1963, the name was changed from the Nationals to the 76ers; and

WHEREAS, The Sixers have a rich history filled with exciting seasons and excellent team and individual efforts; and

WHEREAS, The Sixers won NBA titles in the 1966-67 season and the 1982-83 season; and

WHEREAS, Throughout the years, the Sixers have had numerous outstanding players and have retired the numbers of Charles Barkley, Maurice Cheeks, Wilt Chamberlain, Julius Erving, Bobby Jones, Billy Cunningham, and Hal Greer; and

WHEREAS, The Sixers have had four league most valuable players including Wilt Chamberlain (1965,1966 and 1967), Julius Erving (1980-1981), Moses Malone (1982-1983), and Allen Iverson (2000-2001); and

WHEREAS, The Sixers have had thirty-nine players on the all NBA first and second teams; and

WHEREAS, Eleven Sixers have had triple double games; and

WHEREAS, The Sixers have played before over 19.6 million fans at home; and

WHEREAS, Coach Dolph Schayes (1965-1966) and Larry Brown (2000-2001) have both been named Coach of the Year; now therefore

RESOLVED, BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, That Council honors the Sixers on forty successful years as an NBA franchise in Philadelphia; and

FURTHER RESOLVED, That an Engrossed copy of this resolution be presented to the Sixers as evidence of the sincere respect and admiration of this legislative body.

End