From boos to a roar, Sixers give Philadelphia the night it needed originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
Over the last three weeks, it has not exactly been Always Sunny around the sports complex on South Broad Street.
There has not been much to cheer for, either.
The Phillies fell to the division-rival Braves in the National League Wild Card Series. The struggling Eagles lost Jalen Hurts for what is expected to be the remainder of the season after blood clots were discovered. The Flyers opened their season with a franchise-record nine-game winless streak.
Things had been heading in the wrong direction during the spooky month of October. That might be an understatement.
So, sure, there was weight attached to the start of the Sixers’ season.
After stealing a victory in the hectic environment of Madison Square Garden on Tuesday, the Sixers returned to Philadelphia for one of the city’s most highly anticipated basketball events in decades.
A sellout crowd of 21,423 packed Xfinity Mobile Arena for the home debuts of LeBron James and Jaylen Brown in red, white and blue. Boyz II Men performed the national anthem. Philadelphia boxing icon Bernard Hopkins rang the bell. Allen Iverson sat courtside.
The video-board presentation played like a movie trailer before public-address announcer Matt Cord introduced the starting lineups. His familiar, drawn-out delivery left just enough room for the crowd to insert “sucks” after the name of every visiting Cavalier.
Then the Sixers’ starters were introduced.
The place shook.
“You could really feel it before the game, probably more than ever that I’ve been here, for sure,” Sixers head coach Nick Nurse said. “Just the general buzz and all that kind of stuff.”
That buzz did not last uninterrupted.
Turnover after turnover. Mistake after mistake. Cleveland began pulling away while sucking the energy out of an increasingly anxious crowd.
Donovan Mitchell closed his 22-point first half with a seven-foot turnaround shot, assisted by former Sixer James Harden. It pushed Cleveland’s lead to 69-40 with 1:12 remaining.
Twenty-nine points.
The Sixers committed 15 first-half turnovers. The Cavaliers shot 51 percent from the floor. What had started as a celebration became an all-out chorus of boos.
By halftime, the fans had seemingly run out of things to boo. The halftime drone show did not escape them.
James understood.
“Got the boos,” he said. “That was amazing. We deserved it.”
The Sixers entered the locker room trailing 69-45. The players discussed how they would respond. The fans received a chance to reset, too.
When the Sixers came back onto the floor, there was soon nothing left to boo.
Philadelphia scored the first 11 points of the third quarter in 78 seconds. Brown hit a three-pointer. VJ Edgecombe converted a three-point play. Maxey stole the ball from Peyton Watson and found James, who scored through contact. James then fed Joel Embiid for a layup.
The deficit was down to 13.
Maxey picked up Harden for nearly the entire length of the floor. The Sixers began forcing turnovers and attacking the paint. They put together another 11-0 run later in the quarter.
With 5:21 remaining, Maxey pulled up for a 27-foot three-pointer that cut Cleveland’s lead to seven.
That was when the building found its voice again.
“When he hit that three, that’s certainly as loud as I’ve heard it here,” Nurse said. “You come back from 29 down, that’s pretty fun as a fan to ride that wave.”
Momentum began moving back and forth between the floor and the stands.
The Sixers gave their fans another reason to believe. The crowd pushed them to keep going.
“The energy was great,” Brown said. “The crowd helped us get back into that game. We didn’t do ourselves any favors in the first half, but I think Cleveland felt the atmosphere and they felt the crowd in that second half. It helped us crawl back.”
Philadelphia outscored Cleveland 37-21 in the third quarter. The Sixers began it down 24 and finished it down eight.
As “Enter Sandman” played through the arena before the fourth quarter, the crowd stood. The song is best known around sports as a closer’s entrance.
The Sixers still had to finish the job.
Cleveland pushed its lead back to six early in the fourth before Philadelphia delivered its final surge.
Embiid converted a three-point play and then hit a jumper that gave the Sixers their first lead of the night. Brown scored the next six points. Maxey finished the 15-0 run with a basket that pushed Philadelphia ahead, 104-95.
The game had turned completely.
So had the mood inside the arena.
When Maxey and Harden went nose-to-nose and exchanged shoves during the fourth quarter, the crowd responded with a loud, not-for-print chant directed at Harden.
When Edgecombe returned to the floor with cotton in his nose after taking an accidental elbow from James, the fans applauded his toughness. The second-year player clapped back at them.
“I think that’s the loudest I’ve ever heard Xfinity since I’ve been there,” Edgecombe said. “Shout out to them for not leaving after halftime when you’re down 25 points. That’s big time. I love how the fans supported us tonight.
“They helped us win that game.”
Cleveland made one final push and cut the Sixers’ advantage to 106-102. Mitchell then missed two free throws.
Maxey answered with a driving floater. James stole the ball from Evan Mobley on Cleveland’s next possession, and Brown finished at the other end.
Brown later punctuated the comeback with a driving dunk in the closing seconds.
The Sixers won, 114-106, after trailing by 29. They outscored Cleveland 69-37 after halftime and completed the largest comeback in franchise history during the play-by-play era.
Embiid has experienced nearly every version of a Philadelphia crowd during his years with the Sixers. He has heard the building during playoff runs, his MVP ceremony and plenty of memorable individual performances.
Thursday stood with any of them.
“That was probably top five for me since I’ve been in Philadelphia,” Embiid said. “That was amazing. I have no words.”
The night carried a different meaning for James.
It was his fourth home debut with a new franchise, but his family helped make this one personal. His daughter, Zhuri, spent her 12th birthday courtside. The Sixers displayed her name and a birthday message on the video board. James’ mother was there, too.
“Super special for me to be able to have moments like this in this building, in this city,” James said. “Philly is damn sure right up at the top. I’m happy to be here. I’m extremely happy.”
Philadelphia did not give James and his new teammates unconditional support Thursday night. That would not have been authentic.
The fans arrived ready to celebrate. They booed when the Sixers gave them every reason to boo. Then they stayed, believed and nearly lifted the roof when the team gave them a reason to believe.
For one night, South Philadelphia had something to celebrate again.
“It was everything that I dreamed of and more,” James said.
