1986–87 Philadelphia 76ers season

The 1986–87 NBA season was the 76ers 38th season in the NBA and 24th season in Philadelphia. At the 1986 Draft, the Sixers made two trades that would cloud the franchise for over a decade. The Sixers traded the Number 1 overall pick to the Cleveland Cavaliers (who used this to draft Brad Daugherty), for Roy Hinson and cash. They also traded Moses Malone, Terry Catledge, and two first round draft picks to the Washington Bullets for Jeff Ruland and Cliff Robinson.

1986–87 Philadelphia 76ers season
Head coachMatt Guokas
ArenaThe Spectrum
Results
Record45–37 (.549)
PlaceDivision: 2nd (Atlantic)
Conference: 5th (Eastern)
Playoff finishFirst round
(lost to Bucks 2–3)

Stats at Basketball-Reference.com
Local media
TelevisionWPHL-TV
PRISM
RadioWIP
< 1985–86 1987–88 >

Brad Daugherty would have multiple All-Star selections with the Cavs, while Hinson was dealt away after having a short, unremarkable career (less than 1 and 1/2 years) in Philadelphia. Malone would go to the 1987 NBA All Star game, and Jeff Ruland played in a total of 5 games that season, before sustaining an injury that would keep him out of the NBA until a short stint with the Sixers in the 1992 season.

These two trades were so devastating in that, with the exception of the 2001 season in which they won the Eastern Conference Championship, they have not been considered an elite franchise since, after being one for a period from 1977 to that point. As of 2024, they have won just three division titles after this trade (1990, 2001, 2021), and have only appeared in one Eastern Conference Final series (2001).

The Sixers would finish nine games worse than the previous season at 45–37, and lose in the first round of the playoffs to the Milwaukee Bucks. This would be the 16th and final season for Julius Erving, who in his last regular season home game, became just the third player in ABA-NBA history to score over 30,000 points for a career. Each road city had a farewell ceremony to honor him.

Draft picks

edit
Round Pick Player Position Nationality College
2 44 David Wingate SG/SF   United States Georgetown
3 56 Keith Colbert   United States Virginia Polytech
3 67 Ron Rowan SF   United States St. John's
4 90 Wes Stallings   United States East Tennessee State
5 113 Kevin Holmes   United States DePaul
6 136 Andre McCloud   United States Seton Hall
7 159 Dan Palombizio   United States Ball State

Roster

edit
1986–87 Philadelphia 76ers roster
Players Coaches
Pos. No. Name Height Weight DOB From
F 34 Barkley, Charles 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 252 lb (114 kg) 1963–02–20 Auburn
G 10 Cheeks, Maurice 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1956–09–08 West Texas A&M
G 14 Colter, Steve 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 165 lb (75 kg) 1962–07–24 New Mexico State
F 6 Erving, Julius 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1950-02-22 UMass
F 21 Green, Kenny 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1964–10–11 Wake Forest
F 23 Hinson, Roy 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1961–05–02 Rutgers
C 40 McCormick, Tim 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 240 lb (109 kg) 1956–01–16 Michigan
C 31 McNamara, Mark 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 235 lb (107 kg) 1959–06–08 California
F 4 Robinson, Cliff 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 1960–03–13 USC
C 43 Ruland, Jeff 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 240 lb (109 kg) 1962–07–10 Iona
G 22 Toney, Andrew 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 178 lb (81 kg) 1957-11-23 Louisiana
F 20 Vranes, Danny 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1958–10–29 Utah
G/F 25 Wingate, David 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1963–12–15 Georgetown
Head coach

Legend
  • (DP) Unsigned draft pick
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (S) Suspended
  •   Injured

Regular season

edit

Season standings

edit
W L PCT GB Home Road Div
y-Boston Celtics 59 23 .720 39–2 20–21 15–9
x-Philadelphia 76ers 45 37 .549 14 28–13 17–24 12–12
x-Washington Bullets 42 40 .512 17 27–14 15–26 13–11
New Jersey Nets 24 58 .293 35 19–22 5–36 12–12
New York Knicks 24 58 .293 35 18–23 6–35 8–16
#
Team W L PCT GB
1 c-Boston Celtics 59 23 .720
2 y-Atlanta Hawks 57 25 .695 2
3 x-Detroit Pistons 52 30 .634 7
4 x-Milwaukee Bucks 50 32 .610 9
5 x-Philadelphia 76ers 45 37 .549 14
6 x-Washington Bullets 42 40 .512 17
7 x-Indiana Pacers 41 41 .500 18
8 x-Chicago Bulls 40 42 .488 19
9 Cleveland Cavaliers 31 51 .378 28
10 New Jersey Nets 24 58 .293 35
11 New York Knicks 24 58 .293 35
z - clinched division title
y - clinched division title
x - clinched playoff spot

Record vs. opponents

edit
1986-87 NBA Records
Team ATL BOS CHI CLE DAL DEN DET GSW HOU IND LAC LAL MIL NJN NYK PHI PHO POR SAC SAS SEA UTA WAS
Atlanta 3–3 4–2 4–2 2–0 2–0 3–3 1–1 1–1 3–3 2–0 1–1 3–3 5–0 5–1 3–3 1–1 1–1 2–0 2–0 2–0 2–0 5–0
Boston 3–3 6–0 3–2 2–0 2–0 3–2 2–0 2–0 5–1 2–0 0–2 3–3 4–2 4–2 3–3 2–0 2–0 2–0 2–0 2–0 1–1 4–2
Chicago 2–4 0–6 5–1 1–1 1–1 3–3 0–2 0–2 3–2 2–0 0–2 4–2 3–2 4–2 3–3 1–1 1–1 1–1 1–1 2–0 0–2 3–3
Cleveland 2–4 2–3 1–5 0–2 1–1 1–5 1–1 0–2 3–3 2–0 0–2 1–5 4–2 4–1 2–4 1–1 1–1 1–1 1–1 1–1 0–2 2–4
Dallas 0–2 0–2 1–1 2–0 4–2 1–1 5–0 3–3 0–2 5–0 3–2 2–0 2–0 2–0 2–0 3–2 2–3 5–1 4–2 5–0 3–3 1–1
Denver 0–2 0–2 1–1 1–1 2–4 0–2 4–1 3–3 1–1 2–3 0–5 1–1 2–0 2–0 0–2 3–2 3–2 2–4 5–1 2–3 2–4 1–1
Detroit 3–3 2–3 3–3 5–1 1–1 2–0 1–1 1–1 3–3 2–0 1–1 3–3 5–1 6–0 5–0 1–1 0–2 1–1 1–1 2–0 1–1 3–3
Golden State 1–1 0–2 2–0 1–1 0–5 1–4 1–1 4–1 0–2 6–0 2–4 0–2 2–0 2–0 1–1 1–5 4–2 4–1 4–1 4–2 2–3 0–2
Houston 1–1 0–2 2–0 2–0 3–3 3–3 1–1 1–4 2–0 4–1 1–4 0–2 1–1 1–1 0–2 3–2 2–3 5–1 5–1 1–4 3–3 1–1
Indiana 3–3 1–5 2–3 3–3 2–0 1–1 3–3 2–0 0–2 2–0 0–2 2–4 5–1 3–2 2–4 1–1 0–2 1–1 2–0 1–1 1–1 4–2
L.A. Clippers 0–2 0–2 0–2 0–2 0–5 3–2 0–2 0–6 1–4 0–2 0–6 0–2 1–1 0–2 0–2 1–5 0–6 1–4 1–4 2–4 2–3 0–2
L.A. Lakers 1–1 2–0 2–0 2–0 2–3 5–0 1–1 4–2 4–1 2–0 6–0 1–1 2–0 2–0 2–0 5–1 5–1 5–0 4–1 4–2 3–2 1–1
Milwaukee 3–3 3–3 2–4 5–1 0–2 1–1 3–3 2–0 2–0 4–2 2–0 1–1 4–2 4–2 2–3 2–0 0–2 2–0 1–1 2–0 1–1 4–1
New Jersey 0–5 2–4 2–3 2–4 0–2 0–2 1–5 0–2 1–1 1–5 1–1 0–2 2–4 5–1 3–3 1–1 0–2 0–2 0–2 0–2 1–1 2–4
New York 1–5 2–4 2–4 1–4 0–2 0–2 0–6 0–2 1–1 2–3 2–0 0–2 2–4 1–5 3–3 1–1 0–2 2–0 1–1 0–2 1–1 2–4
Philadelphia 3–3 3–3 3–3 4–2 0–2 2–0 0–5 1–1 2–0 4–2 2–0 0–2 3–2 3–3 3–3 1–1 2–0 2–0 1–1 2–0 1–1 3–3
Phoenix 1–1 0–2 1–1 1–1 2–3 2–3 1–1 5–1 2–3 1–1 5–1 1–5 0–2 1–1 1–1 1–1 2–4 2–3 2–3 1–5 4–1 0–2
Portland 1–1 0–2 1–1 1–1 3–2 2–3 2–0 2–4 3–2 2–0 6–0 1–5 2–0 2–0 2–0 0–2 4–2 3–2 4–1 4–2 3–2 1–1
Sacramento 0–2 0–2 1–1 1–1 1–5 4–2 1–1 1–4 1–5 1–1 4–1 0–5 0–2 2–0 0–2 0–2 3–2 2–3 3–3 2–3 1–5 1–1
San Antonio 0–2 0–2 1–1 1–1 2–4 1–5 1–1 1–4 1–5 0–2 4–1 1–4 1–1 2–0 1–1 1–1 3–2 1–4 3–3 1–4 2–4 0–2
Seattle 0–2 0–2 0–2 1–1 0–5 3–2 0–2 2–4 4–1 1–1 4–2 2–4 0–2 2–0 2–0 0–2 5–1 2–4 3–2 4–1 3–2 1–1
Utah 0–2 1–1 2–0 2–0 3–3 4–2 1–1 3–2 3–3 1–1 3–2 2–3 1–1 1–1 1–1 1–1 1–4 2–3 5–1 4–2 2–3 1–1
Washington 0–5 2–4 3–3 4–2 1–1 1–1 3–3 2–0 1–1 2–4 2–0 1–1 1–4 4–2 4–2 3–3 2–0 1–1 1–1 2–0 1–1 1–1

Playoffs

edit
1987 playoff game log
First Round: 2–3 (home: 1–1; road: 1–2)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance
Series
1 April 24 @ Milwaukee L 104–107 Charles Barkley (21) Charles Barkley (13) Cheeks, Toney (9) MECCA Arena
11,052
0–1
2 April 26 @ Milwaukee W 125–122 (OT) Roy Hinson (28) Charles Barkley (15) Maurice Cheeks (11) MECCA Arena
11,052
1–1
3 April 29 Milwaukee L 120–121 Charles Barkley (39) Cliff Robinson (10) Cheeks, Toney (8) Spectrum
14,361
1–2
4 May 1 Milwaukee W 124–118 Charles Barkley (25) Charles Barkley (13) Maurice Cheeks (11) Spectrum
15,464
2–2
5 May 3 @ Milwaukee L 89–102 Julius Erving (24) Charles Barkley (13) Cheeks, Wingate (5) MECCA Arena
11,052
2–3
1987 schedule

Player statistics

edit
Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field-goal percentage  3P%  3-point field-goal percentage  FT%  Free-throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game

Playoffs

edit

Awards and records

edit

References

edit

See also

edit