The Oldest NBA Franchise That Is the Philadelphia 76ers

The oldest franchise in NBA history is indeed the Philadelphia 76ers and this is due to the fact that the team has been around since 1939. Although the Philadelphia 76ers first began as the Syracuse Nationals, they are still the same franchise hence the oldest franchise designation. The Philadelphia 76ers stayed as the Syracuse Nationals for a good number of years, specifically from 1939 up to 1963, and entered the NBL or National Basketball in 1946 as such. By 1949, the NBL and the BAA merged to form what is now the NBA and the team that was soon to be called the Philadelphia 76ers won the NBA championship of 1955 after such a merger.

In 1963, the Syracuse Nationals were beginning to suffer from lack of revenues due simply to the fact that they were a professional basketball team that belonged to a middle sized city and this kind of a setup made it hard for the team to profit. The Nationals were then purchased and moved to Philadelphia by the new owner, Irv Kosloff, and the name was changed to the Philadelphia 76ers. The reason behind the name is actually to commemorate the signing of the Declaration of Independence which took place in 1776. Since the signing took place in Philadelphia, the historical meaning of the name gave it the kind of boost the team needed in terms of fan support.

The Philadelphia 76ers soon became a team that would succeed and fail just like some of its other ball club counterparts. Wins and losses were garnered and the Sixers became a permanent fixture in Philly. The Philadelphia 76ers won their last NBA Championship title in 1983 and added to their current tally, which makes them owners of three NBA Championship titles, with the second one having been earned in the 1966 to 1967 season, the time when Wilt Chamberlain was still in residence.