2002–03 Philadelphia 76ers season

2002–03 Philadelphia 76ers season
Head coachLarry Brown
General managerBilly King
OwnersComcast Spectacor
ArenaFirst Union Center
Results
Record48–34 (.585)
PlaceDivision: 2nd (Atlantic)
Conference: 4th (Eastern)
Playoff finishConference semifinals
(lost to Pistons 2–4)
Stats at Basketball Reference
Local media
Television
RadioWIP

The 2002–03 Philadelphia 76ers season was the 54th season for the Philadelphia 76ers in the National Basketball Association, and their 40th season in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.[1] During the off-season, the 76ers acquired Keith Van Horn, and former 76ers center Todd MacCulloch from the New Jersey Nets; Van Horn was originally drafted by the team as the second overall pick in the 1997 NBA draft.[2][3][4] The team also signed free agents Greg Buckner and Brian Skinner.

The 76ers got off to a fast start by winning 15 of their first 19 games of the regular season, which included an 8-game winning streak November and December. In December, the team acquired Kenny Thomas from the Houston Rockets in a three-team trade.[5][6] However, the 76ers struggled losing 14 of their next 18 games, which included a six-game losing streak in January, as the team held a 25–24 record at the All-Star break.[7] The 76ers posted a 9-game winning streak between February and March, and finished in second place in the Atlantic Division with a 48–34 record, earning the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference, and qualifying for the NBA playoffs for the fifth consecutive year.[8]

For the first time in his NBA career, Allen Iverson played a full 82-game season, averaging 27.6 points, 5.5 assists and 2.7 steals per game, as he was named to the All-NBA Second Team. In addition, Van Horn averaged 15.9 points and 7.1 rebounds per game, while Eric Snow provided the team with 12.9 points, 6.6 assists and 1.6 steals per game, and was named to the NBA All-Defensive Second Team, and Thomas contributed 10.2 points and 8.5 rebounds per game in 46 games after the trade. Meanwhile, Derrick Coleman provided with 9.4 points and 7.0 rebounds per game, Aaron McKie contributed 9.0 points, 3.5 assists and 1.6 steals per game, MacCulloch averaged 7.1 points and 4.7 rebounds per game, but only played just 42 games, Buckner contributed 6.0 points per game, and Skinner provided with 6.0 points and 4.8 rebounds per game.[9]

During the NBA All-Star weekend at the Philips Arena in Atlanta, Georgia, Iverson was selected for the 2003 NBA All-Star Game, as a member of the Eastern Conference All-Star team.[10][11][12] Iverson finished in sixth place in Most Valuable Player voting,[13][14] and also finished in sixth place in Defensive Player of the Year voting, while Snow finished in tenth place;[14] Snow also finished tied in 21st place in Most Improved Player voting,[14] and head coach Larry Brown finished in ninth place in Coach of the Year voting.[14]

In the Eastern Conference First Round of the 2003 NBA playoffs, the 76ers faced off against the 5th–seeded New Orleans Hornets, who were led by the trio of All-Star forward Jamal Mashburn, All-Star guard Baron Davis, and David Wesley. The 76ers took a 3–1 series lead over the Hornets, before losing Game 5 at home, 93–91 at the First Union Center. The 76ers won Game 6 over the Hornets on the road, 107–103 at the New Orleans Arena to win the series in six games.[15][16][17]

In the Eastern Conference Semi-finals, the team faced off against the top–seeded, and Central Division champion Detroit Pistons, who were led by the trio of Richard Hamilton, Chauncey Billups, and All-Star center, and Defensive Player of the Year, Ben Wallace. The 76ers lost the first two games to the Pistons on the road at The Palace of Auburn Hills, but managed to win the next two games at home, which included a Game 4 win over the Pistons at the First Union Center, 95–82. However, the 76ers lost the next two games, including a Game 6 loss to the Pistons at the First Union Center in overtime, 93–89, thus losing the series in six games.[18][19][20]

The 76ers finished fourth in the NBA in home-game attendance, with an attendance of 807,097 at the First Union Center during the regular season.[9][21] Following the season, Van Horn was traded to the New York Knicks,[22][23] and Brown resigned as head coach after six seasons with the 76ers, and would take a coaching job with the Detroit Pistons.[24][25][26] The 76ers would not win another NBA playoff series until 2012, where they defeated the Chicago Bulls in six games in the Eastern Conference First Round of the 2012 NBA playoffs.

Offseason

In the 2002 NBA draft, the 76ers drafted Czech swingman Jiří Welsch and forward-center Sam Clancy (Clancy would not play in any games in the NBA). The Sixers also made three trades on draft day. Their first trade was with the Golden State Warriors. They traded their first round pick, Jiří Welsch, for a 2004 2nd round draft pick and a 2005 1st round draft pick. In their second trade, they traded Speedy Claxton to the San Antonio Spurs for Mark Bryant, Randy Holcomb, and John Salmons. Their third and final trade of the night was with the Atlanta Hawks. They traded a 2004 2nd round draft pick and a 2006 2nd round draft pick to the Hawks for Efthimios Rentzias.

On July 25, the 76ers signed Greg Buckner and Monty Williams.

On August 6, the Sixers traded Dikembe Mutombo to the New Jersey Nets for Todd MacCulloch and Keith Van Horn. This trade marked the beginning of MacCulloch's second tenure with the franchise.

On August 27, the Sixers signed Brian Skinner.

On September 30, the Sixers signed Art Long and William Avery. Avery would not play any games with Philadelphia.

On October 11, the Sixers waived Alvin Jones. On the 23rd, they waived Damone Brown.[27]

Draft picks

Main article: 2002 NBA draft
Round Pick Player Position Nationality College
1 16 Jiří Welsch SG/SF  Czech Republic Union Olimpija (Slovenia and Adriatic League)
2 45 Sam Clancy PF/C  United States USC

Roster

2002–03 Philadelphia 76ers roster
Players Coaches
Pos. No. Player Height Weight DOB From
SG 21 Greg Buckner 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1976–09–16 Clemson
C 44 Derrick Coleman 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 230 lb (104 kg) 1967–06–21 Syracuse
C 1 Samuel Dalembert 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 250 lb (113 kg) 1981–05–10 Seton Hall
PF 40 Tyrone Hill 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 240 lb (109 kg) 1968–03–19 Xavier
SG 3 Allen Iverson 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 163 lb (74 kg) 1975–06–07 Georgetown
C 11 Todd MacCulloch 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 280 lb (127 kg) 1976–01–27 Washington
SF 8 Aaron McKie 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 209 lb (95 kg) 1972–10–02 Temple
C 14 Efthimios Rentzias 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 250 lb (113 kg) 1976–01–11 Greece
PG 7 John Salmons 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 207 lb (94 kg) 1979–12–12 Miami (FL)
PG 12 Kenny Satterfield 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 186 lb (84 kg) 1981–04–10 Cincinnati
PF 54 Brian Skinner 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 255 lb (116 kg) 1976–05–19 Baylor
PG 20 Eric Snow 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1973–04–24 Michigan State
PF 9 Kenny Thomas 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 245 lb (111 kg) 1977–07–25 New Mexico
PF 4 Keith Van Horn 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 1975–10–23 Utah
SF 5 Monty Williams 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 225 lb (102 kg) 1971–10–08 Notre Dame
Head coach
Assistant(s)
Legend
  • (DP) Unsigned draft pick
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (S) Suspended
  • (IN) Inactive
  • Injured

Roster
Updated: March 3, 2003

Roster Notes

Regular season

Season standings

Atlantic Division
 W L PCT GB Home Road Div
y-New Jersey Nets 49 33 .598 – 33–8 16–25 16–8
x-Philadelphia 76ers 48 34 .585 1 25–16 23–18 17–7
x-Boston Celtics 44 38 .537 5 25–16 19–22 13–12
x-Orlando Magic 42 40 .512 7 26–15 16–25 14–11
e-Washington Wizards 37 45 .451 12 23–18 14–27 11–13
e-New York Knicks 37 45 .451 12 24–17 13–28 9–15
e-Miami Heat 25 57 .305 24 16–25 9–32 5–19
#
Eastern Conference
Team W L PCT GB
1 c-Detroit Pistons 50 32 .610 –
2 y-New Jersey Nets 49 33 .598 1
3 x-Indiana Pacers 48 34 .585 2
4 x-Philadelphia 76ers 48 34 .585 2
5 x-New Orleans Hornets 47 35 .573 3
6 x-Boston Celtics 44 38 .537 6
7 x-Milwaukee Bucks 42 40 .512 8
8 x-Orlando Magic 42 40 .512 8
9 e-New York Knicks 37 45 .451 13
10 e-Washington Wizards 37 45 .451 13
11 e-Atlanta Hawks 35 47 .427 15
12 e-Chicago Bulls 30 52 .366 20
13 e-Miami Heat 25 57 .305 25
14 e-Toronto Raptors 24 58 .293 26
15 e-Cleveland Cavaliers 17 65 .207 33
z – clinched division title
y – clinched division title
x – clinched playoff spot

Game log

Playoffs

2003 playoff game log
First Round: 4–2 (home: 2–1; road: 2–1)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Series
1 April 20 New Orleans W 98–90 Allen Iverson (55) Keith Van Horn (10) Eric Snow (10) First Union Center
19,711 		1–0
2 April 23 New Orleans W 90–85 Allen Iverson (29) Kenny Thomas (16) Derrick Coleman (6) First Union Center
20,229 		2–0
3 April 26 @ New Orleans L 85–99 Allen Iverson (28) Keith Van Horn (9) Allen Iverson (7) New Orleans Arena
17,320 		2–1
4 April 28 @ New Orleans W 96–87 Allen Iverson (22) Kenny Thomas (8) Eric Snow (12) New Orleans Arena
16,243 		3–1
5 April 30 New Orleans L 91–93 Allen Iverson (30) Kenny Thomas (14) Iverson, Snow (7) First Union Center
19,403 		3–2
6 May 2 @ New Orleans W 107–103 Allen Iverson (45) Keith Van Horn (18) Eric Snow (9) New Orleans Arena
18,570 		4–2
Conference Semifinals: 2–4 (home: 2–1; road: 0–3)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Series
1 May 6 @ Detroit L 87–98 Allen Iverson (27) Derrick Coleman (8) Allen Iverson (8) The Palace of Auburn Hills
22,076 		0–1
2 May 8 @ Detroit L 97–104 (OT) Allen Iverson (31) Kenny Thomas (19) Allen Iverson (7) The Palace of Auburn Hills
22,076 		0–2
3 May 10 Detroit W 93–83 Allen Iverson (25) Kenny Thomas (14) Allen Iverson (11) First Union Center
20,743 		1–2
4 May 11 Detroit W 95–82 Allen Iverson (36) Derrick Coleman (15) Allen Iverson (11) First Union Center
20,549 		2–2
5 May 14 @ Detroit L 77–78 Derrick Coleman (23) Derrick Coleman (11) Allen Iverson (9) The Palace of Auburn Hills
22,076 		2–3
6 May 16 Detroit L 89–93 (OT) Allen Iverson (38) Kenny Thomas (14) Allen Iverson (9) First Union Center
20,888 		2–4
2003 schedule

Player statistics

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

Regular season

Player GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
Mark Bryant† 11 0 7.0 .294 1.000 1.5 .1 .1 .1 1.1
Greg Buckner 75 5 20.2 .465 .273 .802 2.9 1.3 1.0 .2 6.0
Derrick Coleman 64 35 27.2 .448 .328 .784 7.0 1.4 .8 1.1 9.4
Tyrone Hill† 24 18 20.7 .404 .600 5.2 .4 .6 .3 4.5
Allen Iverson 82 82 42.5 .414 .277 .774 4.2 5.5 2.7 .2 27.6
Art Long† 19 0 6.9 .380 1.000 .200 2.1 .1 .1 .4 2.1
Todd MacCulloch 42 35 19.3 .517 .671 4.7 .5 .5 .8 7.1
Aaron McKie 80 40 29.7 .429 .330 .836 4.4 3.5 1.6 .1 9.0
Efthimios Rentzias 35 0 4.1 .339 .500 .889 .7 .2 .2 .1 1.5
John Salmons 64 1 7.9 .414 .323 .743 .9 .7 .3 .1 2.1
Kenny Satterfield† 17 0 4.8 .222 .500 .5 .9 .1 .0 .5
Brian Skinner 77 9 17.9 .550 .602 4.8 .2 .6 .7 6.0
Eric Snow 82 82 37.9 .452 .219 .858 3.7 6.6 1.6 .1 12.9
Kenny Thomas† 46 28 30.3 .482 .750 8.5 1.6 1.0 .5 10.2
Keith Van Horn 74 73 31.6 .482 .369 .804 7.1 1.3 .9 .4 15.9
Monty Williams 21 2 13.1 .425 .000 .750 2.1 1.2 .6 .2 4.4

Playoffs

Player GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
Greg Buckner 10 0 11.2 .323 .222 1.000 1.7 .3 .1 .2 2.6
Derrick Coleman 12 12 37.4 .500 .400 .872 8.0 2.0 .6 1.3 13.6
Tyrone Hill 10 0 14.1 .632 1.000 2.8 .2 .1 .1 2.8
Allen Iverson 12 12 46.4 .416 .345 .737 4.3 7.4 2.4 .1 31.7
Aaron McKie 12 0 26.3 .535 .556 .857 3.6 1.8 .8 .2 7.8
John Salmons 6 0 2.7 .000 .000 .000 .5 .0 .0 .0 .0
Brian Skinner 8 0 4.8 .167 .000 1.000 .8 .0 .0 .1 .8
Eric Snow 12 12 34.6 .422 .100 .879 3.3 5.6 1.5 .0 11.5
Kenny Thomas 12 12 32.4 .535 .655 9.3 .9 .7 .4 10.6
Keith Van Horn 12 12 33.5 .382 .438 .900 7.5 .8 .8 .2 10.4
Monty Williams 10 0 9.6 .348 .000 .750 1.5 .0 .2 .0 1.9
  • † Denotes player spent time with another team in the season. Stats reflect time with the 76ers only.

Player statistics citation:[9]

Awards and records

References

  1. ^ 2002-03 Philadelphia 76ers
  2. ^ Wise, Mike (August 7, 2002). "PRO BASKETBALL; Nets Get Mutombo from 76ers for Van Horn and MacCulloch". The New York Times. Retrieved June 11, 2002.
  3. ^ "Nets Get Mutombo for Van Horn, MacCulloch". Los Angeles Times. August 7, 2002. Retrieved June 15, 2022.
  4. ^ "76ers Trade Mutombo to Nets". The Washington Post. August 7, 2002. Retrieved November 30, 2022.
  5. ^ "Posey Involved in Three-Team Trade". United Press International. December 18, 2002. Retrieved October 27, 2022.
  6. ^ "Nuggets, Rockets, 76ers Agree to 3-Way Trade". Arizona Daily Sun. December 18, 2002. Retrieved June 22, 2022.
  7. ^ "NBA Games Played on February 6, 2003". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
  8. ^ "2002–03 Philadelphia 76ers Schedule and Results". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved July 30, 2021.
  9. ^ a b c "2002–03 Philadelphia 76ers Roster and Stats". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
  10. ^ Sheridan, Chris (February 9, 2003). "Something Old, Something New on Court at All-Star Game". Ocala Star-Banner. Retrieved January 27, 2026.
  11. ^ "2003 NBA All-Star Recap". NBA.com. NBA.com Staff. September 13, 2021. Retrieved January 27, 2026.
  12. ^ "2003 NBA All-Star Game: West 155, East 145 (2OT)". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved January 27, 2026.
  13. ^ Teaford, Elliott (May 4, 2003). "Duncan to Win Second MVP in a Row". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
  14. ^ a b c d "2002–03 NBA Awards Voting". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved January 27, 2026.
  15. ^ "PRO BASKETBALL; The Sixers and Iverson Finish Off the Hornets". The New York Times. Associated Press. May 3, 2003. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
  16. ^ Martel, Brett (May 4, 2003). "Sixers Book Advance Ticket". The Washington Post. Retrieved June 11, 2022.
  17. ^ "2003 NBA Eastern Conference First Round: Hornets vs. 76ers". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved January 29, 2026.
  18. ^ Popper, Steve (May 17, 2003). "PRO BASKETBALL; Billups Hits Sixers Late and Pistons March On". The New York Times. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
  19. ^ Maaddi, Rob (May 17, 2003). "Billups Back, Pistons Go Forward". The Washington Post. Retrieved November 27, 2022.
  20. ^ "2003 NBA Eastern Conference Semifinals: 76ers vs. Pistons". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved January 29, 2026.
  21. ^ "2002–03 NBA Season Summary". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved February 3, 2026.
  22. ^ Popper, Steve (July 22, 2003). "PLUS: PRO BASKETBALL; Knicks Are Still Pursuing Van Horn". The New York Times. Retrieved June 11, 2022.
  23. ^ "Sprewell Is Part of 4-Team Trade". Los Angeles Times. July 24, 2003. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  24. ^ Broussard, Chris (May 27, 2003). "PRO BASKETBALL; A Little Traveling Music as Brown Leaves the Sixers for Points Unknown". The New York Times. Retrieved August 24, 2017.
  25. ^ Wyche, Steve (May 27, 2003). "Brown Bows Out as Coach of 76ers". The Washington Post. Retrieved November 27, 2022.
  26. ^ "PRO BASKETBALL; Pistons Oust Carlisle and Want to Talk to Brown". The New York Times. Associated Press. June 1, 2003. Retrieved October 27, 2022.
  27. ^ "2002-03 Philadelphia 76ers Transactions".

See also

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