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Philadelphia 76ers Reveal Black City Edition Jerseys, Court Design

Ben Simmons and the Philadelphia 76ers have revealed their city edition jerseys and court design for the 2020-2021 season.

Justin Grasso

It's been years since the Philadelphia 76ers have worn a uniform color combination with the color black in it. For years, Sixers fans would beg the organization to mix in the Allen Iverson-era black jerseys as a throwback every once in a while.

The Sixers never seem to budge, though. Back in 2017, Sixers President Chris Heck teased the idea of having a different uniform color combination as he promised that if Ben Simmons won Rookie of the Year, Heck would let him design a uniform. At the time, Ben Simmons was polling Twitter to see if fans would embrace black jerseys.

Fast forward to October of 2020 and Heck never made due on his promise despite the fact that Simmons brought home the Rookie of the Year hardware back in 2017. Two seasons came and went without the 76ers donning black threads.

But that will change in 2020-2021. A couple of weeks ago, Heck and Simmons had another Twitter exchange, teasing the jersey idea once again. Although Heck didn't come outright and reveal new uniforms, he made it obvious that something was coming as he changed his Twitter profile picture twice. 

One to Simmons wearing a black All-Star jersey two seasons ago -- and another to Allen Iverson donning the old black jerseys in the early 2000s. Then, Simmons and Iverson sent out cryptic tweets late last week, making it clear that a uniform reveal is coming. On Tuesday morning, ESPN's Zach Lowe did the honors and showed off the Sixers' 2020-2021 City Edition uniforms, which are black, blue, red, and white.

So, the uniforms aren't quite what everybody expected. As Heck included Iverson in on the tease last week, many anticipated a throwback situation. While that's not the case, the 76ers did pay tribute to Philly with the new uniforms as they included the outline of Boathouse Row across the front. The initial reveal might disappoint fans at first as the threads don't meet expectations -- but after a while, fans might adjust. 

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him on Twitter: @JGrasso_

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Justin Grasso
JUSTIN GRASSO

Title: Credentialed writer/reporter covering the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated’s FanNation Email: JustinGrasso32@Gmail.com Location: Philadelphia, PA Expertise: Reporting, insight, and analysis on the Sixers and the NBA  Justin Grasso is a credentialed writer and publisher covering the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated’s FanNation.  Grasso got his start in sports media in 2016 with FantasyPros, working the news desk, providing game-by-game player analysis and updates on the Portland Trail Blazers and the Golden State Warriors. By 2017, he joined FanSided’s Philadelphia Eagles site as a staff writer. After spending one season covering the Eagles as a staff writer, Grasso was promoted to become the site’s Co-Editor. For the next two NFL seasons, he covered the Eagles closely before broadening his NFL coverage. For a brief stint, Grasso covered the NFL on a national basis after joining Heavy.com as an NFL news desk writer. In 2019, Grasso joined the 76ers' beat on a part-time basis, stepping into a role with South Jersey’s 97.3 ESPN. Ahead of the 2019-2020 NBA season, he concluded a three-year stint covering the Eagles and joined the Sixers beat full-time. Grasso has covered the 76ers exclusively since then for Sports Illustrated. He is a member of the Pro Basketball Writer’s Association.  Twitter: @JGrasso_ Instagram: @JGrassoNBA

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