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PHILADELPHIA (AP) — After watching Knicks fans take over the 76ers’ arena for years, Joel Embiid openly pleaded with fans not to sell their tickets on the open market for home playoff games.
“Don’t sell your tickets,” Embiid said. “This is bigger than you. We need you guys.”
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Of more pressing concern for the Sixers and their fans, they need Embiid.
The 2023 NBA MVP, Embiid missed Game 2 of the second-round series against the Knicks with a sprained right ankle and a sore right hip.
The 76ers put up a far better fight without Embiid than in the Knicks’ 137-98 romp in Game 1. yet still lost 108-102 on Wednesday night. It’s the Knicks who hold a 2-0 lead in the Eastern Conference semifinals when the series shifts to Philadelphia for Game 3 on Friday night and Game 4 on Sunday.
Recent history proved, the Knicks should feel right at home once they play in Philadelphia.
Spurred by affordable train fare, cheaper tickets compared to Madison Square Garden and a simply overzealous passion for Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns and the rest of the Knicks team stamped a legitimate NBA championship contender, New York fans have flooded Philly and provided a home-court edge on the road.
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The Sixers’ strategy to ward off Knicks fans in this playoff series was to try through Ticketmaster to geographically restrict sales.
Geo-fencing, in sports ticket lingo.
A message on their website over the weekend read: “Xfinity Mobile Arena is located in Philadelphia, PA. Sales to this event will be restricted to residents of Greater Philadelphia area. Residency will be based on credit card billing address. Orders by residents outside Greater Philadelphia area will be canceled without notice and refunds given.”
The 76ers — and other sports teams in all leagues that cut off sales outside city limits — essentially shut the front door of their home but leave all the windows open. There are so many ways around the game plan through the various resale platforms — no proof-of-Philadelphia ID needed — it hardly seemed worth the effort.
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The splashy headline for a day could turn into a cold…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/knicks-takeover-philadelphia-embiid-plea-145601416.html
Author : DAN GELSTON
Publish date : 2026-05-07 14:56:00
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