The Philadelphia 76ers have a long Jerome Baker Color Rush Jersey , proud history.
They’ve been around since the NBA’s very first season, starting out as the Syracuse Nationals. Their resume includes three championships. The list of franchise greats runs from Dolph Schayes to Wilt Chamberlain, from Julius Erving to Allen Iverson.
They’ve never done anything like this.
As if to put an emphatic stamp on their staggering turnaround from a 10-72 debacle just two seasons ago , the Sixers set a team record with their 15th consecutive victory, holding off the Atlanta Hawks 121-113 on Tuesday night in the penultimate game of the regular season.
Coach Brett Brown marveled at the accomplishment.
”It’s not like we’re a young club,” he said. ”We are an old club, with a tremendous amount of culture and a tremendous amount of history. Taking that type of momentum into the playoffs, it’s important. It doesn’t guarantee anything, but it certainly lets you feel like you’ve been doing the right things. The team has been fantastic.”
The Sixers can wrap up the third seed in the Eastern Conference with a home victory over the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday night, which could pay big dividends in the postseason.
Finishing No. 3 could possibly lead to a second-round meeting with the Boston Celtics, who have lost four of five and are limping into the playoffs without Kyrie Irving, who is out for the season. If the 76ers slip to fourth behind Cleveland in the East, they could get top-seeded Toronto in the second round Cheap P.J. Hall Jersey , a potentially much tougher matchup considering the Raptors have won 25 of their last 31 games.
”We have a real opportunity that we don’t want to let slip,” Brown said. ”We can control our own destiny. We’re not a prisoner to other people’s events. That, in and of itself, is rare and not to be taken for granted.”
Of course, the way the Sixers are playing , they have no reason to fear anyone. They’re the only team in the East hotter than the Raptors, having won 26 of their last 31 games.
What makes it even more amazing: Philadelphia kept right on winning after losing young All-Star Joel Embiid , who is expected to miss at least the first couple of weeks of the playoffs after undergoing surgery to repair a fractured orbital bone around his left eye.
He leads the team in scoring (22.9 points per game) and rebounding (11.0).
”The strength of this team is so deep,” Robert Covington said. ”We’re doing it without Joel, so imagine once we get the head honcho back. He’s definitely going to be ecstatic. There wasn’t really much of a drop-off. We just played a little bit differently. We’ll be glad once he gets back. We just have to hold it down until he gets back.”
The Sixers showed off their depth against the Hawks – including a couple of guys who began the season in Atlanta. Ersan Ilyasova scored 26 points off the bench. Marco Belinelli added 20. Together, they hit nine 3-pointers.
JJ Redick led the way with 28 points, knocking down 6 of 9 beyond the arc . That allowed Philadelphia to extend its winning streak even on a day when rookie star Ben Simmons missed the morning shootaround because of a stomach bug, and looked a bit out of sorts during the game. He did finish with 14 points Authentic Geron Christian Jersey , 10 rebounds and six assists before fouling out in the closing seconds.
Simmons can’t wait for the regular-season finale against the Bucks, a possible preview of the opening-round playoff series.
”It’s going to be a packed house against a great team in the East,” he said. ”I think the way we’re playing right now, we have a little momentum.”
That’s a bit of an understatement.
For a few hours, at least, the Sixers could savor something this team has never done.
Win 15 games in a row.
”I think it’s very significant,” Redick said, ”if you look at the history of the franchise.”
A franchise with a long, proud history just added another chapter.
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The Latest on the New Jersey Legislature’s effort to legalize sports betting (all times local):
5:25 p.m.
Monmouth Park Racetrack says it won’t take any sports bets Thursday night.
But the track’s plans beyond that remain unclear.
The Oceanport, New Jersey track near the Jersey shore says it will announce soon when it plans to begin taking bets at its sports wagering lounge.
The New Jersey Legislature approved a sports betting bill Thursday, but Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy won’t say when he’ll act on it.
One state lawmaker notes that language that would have prohibited a casino or track from taking sports bets before the bill is signed was stripped from the bill before it was approved.
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5:20 p.m.
Texas billionaire Tilman Fertitta is thanking the New Jersey Legislature for a last-minute fix that will allow his Golden Nugget casino in Atlantic City to take sports bets – just not on basketball.
Fertitta owns the NBA’s Houston Rockets, and would have been shut out of sports betting under previous versions of the bill.
But the change allows him to offer bets on other sports except for basketball.
Fertitta says he eventually hopes to persuade New Jersey to let the Golden Nuggets take bets on basketball teams other than the Rockets, which is what Nevada regulators allow.
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5 p.m.
Major League Baseball Authentic Calvin Ridley Jersey , the NBA and the PGA Tour want New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy to ”fix” the sports betting law on his desk to address concerns about the integrity of betting on their games.
The leagues are seeking payments to help them police betting patterns, and want better information sharing.
They say the law passed Thursday by the state Legislature does not address those concerns.
Lawmakers rejected the integrity fee payments.
It remains unclear when sports betting might begin in New Jersey, or when the Democratic governor might act on the bill.
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4:55 p.m.
A major bookmaking company has signed a contract to offer sports betting at tracks in New Jersey and New York.
Moments after the New Jersey Legislature gave final approval to a bill legalizing sports betting, Betfair US announced it will offer sports betting at the Meadowlands Racetrack in East Rutherford, just outside New York City.
It will do likewise at Tioga Downs Racetrack in New York.
Betfair says it will start offering sports betting this summer and will be operational at the tracks before the NFL season begins in September.
Betfair US is a subsidiary of Paddy Power Betfair, one of the largest publicly traded sports betting companies in the world.
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4:40 p.m.
A New Jersey lawmaker says a Jersey shore racetrack is technically free to start taking bets immediately, even before a bill legalizing sports betting is signed by Gov. Phil Murphy.
Republican state Sen. Declan O’Scanlan says language was dropped from the bill that prohibited any sports betting facility from opening until the bill is signed.
That appears to clear the way for Monmouth Park in Oceanport to begin taking bets right away. The track has loudly wanted to begin taking bets Friday.
But its chief, Dennis Drazin, also has said he does not want to antagonize the governor.
It remains unclear what the track’s plans are and when the governor might act.
3:35 p.m.
The New Jersey Legislature has given final approval to a bill legalizing sports betting.
The state Senate approved the bill Thursday afternoon shortly after the Assembly approved it.
It now goes to the desk of Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy, who hasn’t said when he’ll sign it.
Murphy’s office says the bill will get a careful review, but won’t estimate when the governor will act on it.
Monmouth Park racetrack has been particularly vocal about its desire to start taking bets on Friday.
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3:10 p.m.
The New Jersey Assembly has unanimously approved a bill that would legalize sports betting.
The bill approved Thursday now goes to the state Senate, which also is expected to approve it, and then to the desk of Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy. It’s unclear whether he will sign it into law.
The Assembly amended the bill to allow casinos that own more than 10 percent of a sports team to still offer sports betting www.patriotsauthorizedshop.com/authentic-jason-mccourty-jersey , but only on sports other than those in which they own a team. That would let the Golden Nugget back in the game.
Texas billionaire Tilman Fertitta owns the Golden Nugget and the NBA’s Houston Rockets.
Under the change, the Golden Nugget could still take bets on sports including football, baseball and hockey, but not basketball.
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1:50 p.m.
New Jersey lawmakers are rethinking a law that would have banned one Atlantic City casino from offering sports betting.
The state Assembly is expected to amend its proposed sports betting law to allow casinos that own more than 10 percent of a sports team to still offer sports betting, but only on sports other than those in which they own a team.
That would let the Golden Nugget back in the game.
Texas billionaire Tilman Fertitta owns the Golden Nugget and the NBA’s Houston Rockets.
Under the change, the Golden Nugget could still take bets on sports including football, baseball and hockey, but not basketball.
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12:30 a.m.
New Jersey’s proposed sports betting law is heading down to the wire.
Final legislative approval is expected on Thursday, but it’s anyone’s bet when Gov. Phil Murphy might sign it.
Despite the desire of Atlantic .