Commentary | Sixers gave pro-Knicks crowd plenty to cheer for in Game 3 loss

PHILADELPHIA - What do you get when you combine Derek Zoolander, Willy Wonka and hundreds of guys who sound like My Cousin Vinny?

A home crowd in name only, and one the Sixers will continue to deserve for however long they continue to serve up performances like their 108-94 loss to the Knicks in Game 3.

Less than a week ago, Joel Embiid implored fans not to sell their tickets, citing the pro-Knicks crowds that invaded Xfinity Mobile Arena a couple of postseasons ago. On Friday night, he and the Sixers made sure that anybody who did not heed the call would wake up with zero regrets. After scoring the game's first nine points and building a first-quarter lead that climbed to as high as 12, the home team turned into the exact squad that that so many home fans were willing to avoid. They were out-worked, out-hustled, out-executed, and out-played by a team that didn't do any of those things particularly well.

There was a lot of opportunity for the Sixers here. Though they were down two games to none in the series, they were coming off a spirited performance that easily could have broken the other way. Embiid was back in the lineup after a one-game absence due to hip andankle injuries he suffered in Game 1. Most significantly, the Knicks were playing without two-way star OG Anunoby, whose defensive contributions have played an irreplaceable role in the Knicks' success. With Anunoby's hamstring injury potentially sidelining him beyond Game 3, the Sixers had a very clear path to sending the series back to New York tied at two games apiece.

At first, they seemed to grasp the gravity of the moment. Paul George scored 13 points in the game's first seven minutes. The Sixers scored the game's first nine points and raced out to a 20-8 lead. It would have been easy to forget that the arena was divided in its loyalties if not for the sight of Ben Stiller and Timothee Chalamet sitting courtside.

Then, the momentum turned southward. It continued in that direction for the rest of the night. The Knicks tied the game at 33 and then again at 35. They did not trail for the rest of the night. After leading by as many as 12 in the first quarter, the Sixers were outscored 52-29 before Kelly Oubre Jr. bounced in a 3-pointer as the first half expired to cut the Sixers' halftime deficit to eight.

The Sixers battled to start the third, but Embiid had turnovers on two straight possessions after they'd cut their deficit to four. By the time former Sixers Landry Shamet hit a 3-pointer with 1.7 seconds left in the third quarter, Xfinity Mobile Arena was echoing with chants of "Let's Go Knicks!"

The only question now is whether the Sixers understand the connection between performances like this one and the supply-demand ratio on the secondary ticket market. This was their fifth loss in their last six home playoff games. It was their seventh loss in their last 11 home conference semifinals games, a stretch that dates back to that 2021 series against the Hawks where they lost Games 1, 5 and 7 in South Philly. More often than not, a team deserves the crowd it gets. That is certainly the case for the Sixers and Madison Square Garden South.

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This story was originally published May 8, 2026 at 9:52 PM.