The Philadelphia 76ers play in the Eastern Conference of the Atlantic Division of the NBA (National Basketball Association) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The 76ers were originally the Syracuse Nationals formed in 1946 and are one of the NBA’s oldest franchises. After moving to Philadelphia in 1963, the team held a contest for coming up with a new name. Walter Stalberg chose the new name, 76ers, which is named after the signing of the Declaration of Independence in Philadelphia in 1776. Headline writers quickly shortened the nickname to Sixers. For marketing purposes, the two names have become interchangeable.

The Philadelphia 76ers have a very storied history. Some of the NBA’s greatest players of all time have played for the organization, including Allen Iverson, Charles Barkley, Moses Malone, Julius Erving and Wilt Chamberlin. Two NBA championships have been won by Philadelphia. Their first title was in 1966-67. Wilt Chamberlin led that team, which is widely regarded as the best team to ever be assembled in the NBA. Their second NBA title was in 1982-83 and was led by Moses Malone and Julius Erving. Since then the Sixers have only made it into the Finals one other time. That occurred in 2001 when Iverson led the team. However, they lost to the Los Angeles Lakers, their bitter rival, 4-1. Since 2000-01, they haven’t had a lot of success. However, the Philadelphia 76ers are still recognized as one of the NBA’s most successful and well known franchises.