By Jawn Kruk | Side Jawn Sports | October 21, 2026
Well, that was a beautiful way to ruin a party.
The Knicks had the rings, the banner, the Garden crowd, and a whole building ready to celebrate themselves. The Sixers showed up and left with a 106–100 win. Enjoy the ceremony, New York. We’ll take the basketball game.
And before we get into it, let me make something perfectly clear: outside of the Bird Lady from Home Alone 2, I loathe the scum that are Knicks fans. She gets a pass. Anybody willing to help Kevin and weaponize a flock of pigeons has earned my respect. The rest of that fan base? Watching them leave disappointed is a lovely way to spend a Tuesday.
All That Mouth, Then an Opening-Night Loss
Of course, their scumbag fans had to break out the “Fuck Embiid” chants. Raise a championship banner and somehow Joel is still taking up space in your head. Congratulations on the jewelry. Apparently it didn’t come with anything new to say.
Then you had a fan jawing at LeBron, who had some words right back. Imagine paying to watch your team celebrate a championship and deciding your contribution to the evening should be trying to get under LeBron James’ skin.
They can do all the shouting they want. That final score is a pretty good response.
Maxey Had Other Plans
For all the excitement about the new faces, Tyrese Maxey led the scoring with 28 points, adding five assists and three steals. His late steal and finish helped give Philly breathing room when this thing was still up for grabs.
That’s what I want from him. When the building gets loud and every possession matters, go make something happen. Adding talent around him doesn’t mean he needs to take a back seat. Maxey gave us a pretty good opening-night reminder of that.
LeBron in Philly Is Still Going to Take Some Getting Used To
I’m going to need a minute here. LeBron James in a Sixers jersey still looks like somebody messed around with the rosters in a video game.
But his debut produced 14 points, nine rebounds, and seven assists. Jaylen Brown added 19 points and eight rebounds, then delivered a huge late block on Jalen Brunson. That’s a pretty nice introduction to the rivalry, fellas.
We’ve spent enough years asking who else is going to make a play when things get uncomfortable. For one night, we had answers. A veteran who can help organize things. A wing who can score and make a massive defensive play. Give me more of that.
Embiid Didn’t Have to Do Everything
Joel finished with 13 points, 11 rebounds, six assists, and three blocks. Nobody’s hanging that scoring total in a museum, but I’ll gladly take a win where he contributes in several ways without needing to score 40.
If this group is going to work, some nights have to look like that. Get the rebound. Protect the basket. Find the open guy. There is enough talent here to share the responsibility. Every possession shouldn’t require Joel to rescue everybody.
One Game, but I’m Enjoying This One
The Sixers closed the third quarter on an 11–0 run, a stretch that helped turn the game their way. Then they finished the job in a building that desperately wanted to send them home with a loss.
Am I planning a parade after one game? No. I’ve watched this franchise long enough to know better than to start shopping for confetti in October. There’s a whole season ahead, and this team has plenty left to prove.
But I’m absolutely enjoying this one. You can have reasonable expectations and still laugh when the Knicks’ big celebration ends with a loss to Philly.
Raise the banner. Admire the rings. Chant whatever the hell you want.
The Sixers are 1–0. Play the damn song.
Leave a Reply