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Allen Iverson Welcomes James Harden 'Home' to Philadelphia

76ers legendary guard Allen Iverson has dubbed Philadelphia the best crowd of fans to play in front of many times throughout his career and beyond. And he's

Justin Grasso

Allen Iverson Welcomes James Harden 'Home' to Philadelphia
Allen Iverson Welcomes James Harden 'Home' to Philadelphia /

76ers legendary guard Allen Iverson has dubbed Philadelphia the best crowd of fans to play in front of many times throughout his career and beyond.

And he's excited that another NBA superstar will find out firsthand what it's like to play in front of Sixers fans.

On Wednesday night, James Harden makes his next Sixers debut. Last Friday, as the Sixers faced the Minnesota Timberwolves coming back from the All-Star break, Harden made his Philadelphia debut. 

After playing in the last two games against the Timberwolves and the New York Knicks, Harden will now make his home debut -- and Iverson welcomes him "home."

Allen Iverson Welcomes James Harden

"The fans in Philadelphia are the best in the world, you'll see tonight… Welcome Home killa!!!" Iverson tweeted.

Wednesday night certainly won't be Harden's first impression of Sixers fans. Being in the NBA since 2009, Harden has played in Philadelphia many times as a member of the Oklahoma City Thunder, Houston Rockets, and the Brooklyn Nets.

But when he takes the floor on Wednesday, he'll don the home team's jersey.

A couple of weeks back, Harden received a solid first impression from the Philly crowd as he was introduced as an honorary bell-ringer ahead of the Sixers' rivalry matchup against the Boston Celtics in South Philly. 

As expected, the crowd was hyped to see their newly-acquired All-Star take the floor and take part in a pregame ritual. However, Harden's bell-ringing moment won't be anything compared to what the energy of the crowd will be like on Wednesday night when the Sixers take on the New York Knicks.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him for live updates 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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