The Philadelphia 76ers aren’t the first NBA team to call the City of Brotherly Love home, but they have integrated themselves as one of the biggest sporting institutions in the city.
They have been the community’s professional basketball team since moving from Syracuse, NY in 1963, and they have seen many outstanding players don the Sixers jersey in the 61 years the team has stayed there.
With the amount of history the Sixers organization and the city share, you would think that the team is going to spend the rest of their existence wowing the Philly crowd with their play. However, a recent rumor will rock the Philadelphia community if proven true.
The Philadelphia 76ers are reportedly looking for another city to call home after 61 years in Philly
A Philly sports fan’s ideal world would have the team stay in the city for the rest of their lives. While it’s common knowledge at this point that the Sixers are looking for a better stadium to cover their expenses, no one thought they would be looking at another destination.
However, a reporter broke the news that the organization is reportedly exploring out-of-state options if they don’t think the city can provide the stadium they badly need.
Per ROI-NJ.com’s Tom Bergeron:
The state of New Jersey is making a serious push to convince the Philadelphia 76ers to move to New Jersey and into a new arena that would be built in Camden, four people familiar with the discussions confirmed to ROI-NJ.
Discussions between top state officials and leaders from Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment (which owns the team) have been ongoing for the last two months, the sources said.
The sources indicated that talks have picked up recently, in part because HBSE’s efforts to build a new arena in Center City Philadelphia have hit repeated roadblocks, despite the fact that the owners have indicated they would self-finance the $1.3 billion proposed project.
The Sixers’ current lease at the Wells Fargo Center will last until the 2030-31 season, so there’s plenty of time for the city and its core fanbase to come up with a solution that will keep the team’s ownership group happy.
However, the state may find itself without a basketball team within the next ten years if they don’t present a proposal that doesn’t satisfy the team owners’ demands.
Such a thing would be a travesty for the NBA as the Sixers have been a fixture in the league for the longest time. However, such a controversial move has been made before, and it won’t be the last if it does happen.
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