Fans of the New York Knicks have been pumped about their team’s playoff aspirations. How pumped? They’ve been invading the Wells Fargo Center during their series against the Philadelphia 76ers.
So much so that center Joel Embiid felt compelled to call out his own fans.
With the 76ers’ home court under two hours from New York City, fans have made the trek to back the road team. They’re supporting the Knicks in droves.
It apparently has paid off. The Knicks stole one on the Sixer’s home court on Sunday, giving them a 3-1 series advantage at the time. A crucial game considering Philadelphia stole one back in New York. The Sixers still face a 3-2 deficit.
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Knicks Fans Caught The Attention of 76ers Owners
Knicks fans overtaking the Wells Fargo Center caught the attention of 76ers ownership, as well as Fanatics CEO Michael Rubin, once a minority owner of the team.
So they decided to get proactive, purchasing thousands of tickets in an effort to keep New Yorkers out of the arena.
“Josh Harris, David Blitzer, [David Adelman] and I just bought more than 2,000 tix for Sixers Game 6,” Rubin wrote on X. “We absolutely CANNOT let Knicks fans take over our arena again!”
Rubin adds that the tickets will be given to first responders, healthcare workers, and other local groups “once we know they’re legit Sixers fans and not imposters!”
What stringent vetting process will be utilized remains to be seen.
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Embiid, Barkley Not Happy With The Fans
Embiid, following the 76ers 97-92 loss to the Knicks on Sunday, laid into the fans.
“I love our fans,” Embiid said after the game. “(I) think it’s unfortunate and I’m not calling them out, but it is disappointing.”
Yea, that’s calling them out. Embiid went on to say Knicks fans cheering in their arena “kind of p—es me off.”
“Especially because Philly is considered a sports town. They’ve always shown up and I don’t think that should happen. Yeah. It’s not OK.”
Also not okay? Playing matador defense against Jalen Brunson. Pretty confident the 76ers fans weren’t the ones letting him run circles around the court for 47 points and 10 assists.
👀 Joel Embiid on the amount of Knicks fans at game 4 in Philadelphia
— Jeff Skversky (@JeffSkversky) April 28, 2024
“Disappointing. I love our fans, think it's unfortunate. I'm not calling them out, but it is disappointing… I've been here for 10 years, kind of pisses me off."pic.twitter.com/4oDlc8mef3
NBA legend Charles Barkley also took aim at Philly Fan.
“I don’t give a damn. We’re the Philadelphia 76ers. You can’t have them people in your building making all that noise!” he said.
Barkley took a jab at 76ers ownership as well: “I guarantee you them people in New York wouldn’t sell Sixer tickets.”
"I'm disgusted. All those Knicks fans there."
— New York Basketball (@NBA_NewYork) April 26, 2024
–– Charles Barkley at halftime pic.twitter.com/O6TN1lOMaC
Ownership appears to be listening. And yet, they’re still some paranoia about Knicks fans taking over the 76ers arena.
Barkley and other Philadelphia sports figures are pleading with fans not to sell their tickets to Knicks lovers.
The two teams will do battle in Game 6 tonight. Will Sixer fans show up? Will they help motivate the team to force a Game 7 back in New York?
