Anthropomorphic Rabbit Sure To Lead 76ers To Promised Land

As you may remember, last year the 76ers had quite the season; they finished 2 games under .500, returned to the playoffs (this is the NBA, after all) and took 2 games from the Pistons in the first round. Then, this offseason, the 76ers not only signed Elton Brand but cut a lot of the deadweight off the roster. A bench with Royal Ivey, Kareem Rush, Theo Ratliff and Donyell Marshall instead of Kevin Ollie et al? Um, yes, sign me up.

(Side note: I actually went here and looked up who was on the 76ers bench last season. The 76ers traded Rodney Carney and Calvin Booth to the Timberwolves; they’ve actually signed Kevin Ollie as well. The rest of the guys on the bench? Herbert Hill, Shavlik Randolph, Louis Amundson. Ha, ha.)

But don’t sign me up for tickets to the season opener, because that’s tonight at the Wachovia Center. (That Daily News story is headlined “Sixers president/GM Stefanski set dominoes in motion for new-look team,” yet another quick, witty headline the Daily News sports section is best known for.) The game has been moved up to 6 p.m., even, due to the baseball game.

The 76ers sent out a helpful email detailing the in-game entertainment in tonight’s opener (thanks RJ):

1/2 QTR Break: Hip-Hop & the Hare Raisers Dunk Show
Halftime: Human Slinky
3/4 QTR Break: Carvel Tricycle Race

What, no musical chairs? The Carvel Tricycle Race, though, I could see bringing in the crowds.

Editor’s Note: Naw, seriously, the 76ers are going to be awesome this year. 49-33, No. 4 seed in the East, lose to the Celtics in the second round of the playoffs. It ain’t perfect, but it’s a start.