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Top Moments From The Philadelphia 76ers 2023 Home Opener

Author Matty Cord

I am not sure there is anything better than seeing a packed Wells Fargo Center crowd eager to see some Philadelphia 76ers basketball. Well, that’s exactly what happened this past Sunday night as the team played their home opener for the 2023-2024 campaign.

The team took on the Portland Trail Blazers and won in a bit of a blowout by a score of 126-98. Joel Embiid had a monster game scoring 35 points and bringing in 15 rebounds. Plus, Tyrese Maxey and Tobias Harris checked in with 26 and 24 points, respectively.

This year’s home opener was actually my 26th home opener as the team’s public address announcer, and they are always so exciting.

I’ve seen many great 76ers players over the years, including the reigning MVP, Embiid, and Maxey who addressed the crowd prior to tipoff.

Nothing is better than a new season, new team, new head coach, and a roster that has a chance to play deep into June.

As for the opening night itself, it was a ton of fun as always.

It started off with a great pregame meal, including house-smoked brisket and amazing sides.

Then, I got to see many of the players warm up for the game and the return of an old friend — Matisse Thybulle!

 

Thybulle now plays for the Trail Blazers, but he is quite familiar with the Wells Fargo Center as he started his career here.

Next, former Eagles great, Trent Cole, got the crowd hyped up for the game as the ceremonial bell ringer.

It must have worked because the crowd was great from the opening tipoff, and the 76ers went on to win by 28 points!

With the win, the team improved their record to 2-1, and in reality, could be 3-0 after a one-point loss to one of the best teams in the league, the Milwaukee Bucks, in the season opener.

The 76ers are back in action at home Thursday night as they take on the Toronto Raptors for a second time in this early season.

Go Sixers!

More from Matt Cord…

Joel Embiid Is The MVP Of The NBA

Another trophy is making its way to South Philly and taking its rightful home right on Broad Street.

Joel “The Process” Embiid was officially awarded the MVP of the NBA last night, and a lot of us think it has been a long time coming.

The big fella had quite the season!

He led the NBA in points per game with 33.1 and brought in 10.2 rebounds per game, which was good for 8th in the league.

Plus, he got his teammates involved, averaging 4.2 assists per game.

Embiid is the fifth Philadelphia 76ers player to win the award with Wilt Chamberlain winning in 1966, 1967, and 1968, Julius “Dr. J” Erving winning in 1981, Moses Malone winning in 1983, and Allen Iverson winning in 2001.

This is the second MVP season I have had the pleasure to watch up close as the public address announcer for the team.

Both seasons were legendary between Iverson’s season in ‘01 and Joel’s this year!

We all know the ‘01 season ended in an NBA Finals appearance, so hopefully, his year is similar, but we actually finish the job this time and win it all!

But that discussion is for another day!

Today is all about Embiid!

It has been a pleasure to watch him grow as a basketball player.

From a guy who couldn’t get on the floor his first two years due to injury to the best player in the world!

Also, off the floor, he is one of the funniest players to be around.

For example, when we were in London in 2018, I snagged a funny photo of him imitating Dikembe Mutumbo’s finger wave!

That’s just one small moment that sticks out of him as a person.

I look forward to doing his intro every night because I know it is going to be the loudest the crowd gets during the pregame night in and night out.

Plus, I can’t forget our pregame ritual where I give him his first pass of the night and then after getting a feel for the game ball, he passes it back to me so I can give it to the referee!

It is so cool to see all his teammates react and give him his flowers!

He deserves them all!

But I’m sure his focus right now isn’t even on winning the award, it’s on trying to get healthy for his team and working towards a championship!

So let’s get it done, big fella!

Congrats!

Matt Cord is the host of the Matt Cord Show. He is a lover of all Philly Sports and has been the voice of the Sixers for 27 years and NBA2K for the past 4 years. As a cyclist enthusiast, Matt writes about his adventures all throughout the city.

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Author Matty Cord
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