1984–85 Philadelphia 76ers season
The 1984–85 Philadelphia 76ers season was Charles Barkley's rookie season. Barkley joined a veteran team that included Julius Erving, Moses Malone, and Maurice Cheeks, three players who took Philadelphia to the 1983 NBA championship. The Sixers finished with a regular season record of 58-24, five games behind the Celtics in the Atlantic Division.
In the first round of the playoffs, they beat the Washington Bullets 3-1, and then in the Eastern semi-finals they swept the Milwaukee Bucks. The Sixers in the Eastern Conference Finals were defeated in five games by the Boston Celtics. In the game three loss, Julius Erving was booed by the home Sixer fans. After this series Erving was to play the guard position for the last two years of his career. This was also the final series for Coach Billy Cunningham, who quit and would be replaced by Matt Goukas.
This also was the last full season for Andrew Toney, who would be sidelined the next year with a foot injury and played in only 6 games, and never was able to return to his previous All-Star form.
The team's season roster is featured in the video game NBA 2K16.
NBA Draft
Charles Barkley left before his final year at Auburn and made himself eligible for the 1984 NBA draft. He was selected with the fifth pick in the first round by the Philadelphia 76ers, two slots after the Chicago Bulls drafted Michael Jordan.Round | Pick | Player | Position | Nationality | College |
1 | 5 | Charles Barkley | PF | United States | Auburn |
1 | 10 | Leon Wood | SG | United States | California State-Fullerton |
1 | 22 | Tom Sewell | SG | United States | Lamar |
3 | 48 | James Banks | United States | Georgia | |
3 | 68 | Butch Graves | United States | Yale | |
4 | 91 | Earl Harrison | PF | United States | Morehead State |
5 | 114 | Dan Federman | United States | Tennessee | |
6 | 137 | Gary Springer | PF | United States | Iona |
7 | 160 | Rich Congo | United States | Drexel | |
8 | 183 | Franks Dobbs | United States | Villanova | |
9 | 205 | Michael Mitchell | United States | Drexel | |
10 | 227 | Martin Clark | United States | Boston College |
Roster
Regular season
Season standings
Record vs. opponents
Playoffs
East First Round
Philadelphia 76ers vs. Washington Bullets: 76ers win series 3-1- Game 1 @ The Spectrum, Philadelphia : Philadelphia 104, Washington 97
- Game 2 @ The Spectrum, Philadelphia : Philadelphia 113, Washington 94
- Game 3 @ Capital Centre, Landover : Washington 118, Philadelphia 100
- Game 4 @ Capital Centre, Landover : Philadelphia 106, Washington 98
East Conference Semifinals
Milwaukee Bucks vs. Philadelphia 76ers: 76ers win series 4-0- Game 1 @ The MECCA, Milwaukee : Philadelphia 127, Milwaukee 105
- Game 2 @ The MECCA, Milwaukee : Philadelphia 112, Milwaukee 108
- Game 3 @ The Spectrum, Philadelphia : Philadelphia 109, Milwaukee 104
- Game 4 @ The Spectrum, Philadelphia : Philadelphia 121, Milwaukee 112
East Conference Finals
Boston Celtics vs. Philadelphia 76ers: Celtics win series 4-1- Game 1 @ Boston Garden, Boston : Boston 108, Philadelphia 93
- Game 2 @ Boston Garden, Boston : Boston 106, Philadelphia 98
- Game 3 @ The Spectrum, Philadelphia : Boston 105, Philadelphia 94
- Game 4 @ The Spectrum, Philadelphia : Philadelphia 115, Boston 104
- Game 5 @ Boston Garden, Boston : Boston 102, Philadelphia 100
Playoffs
Award winners
- Charles Barkley, NBA All-Rookie Team 1st Team
- Maurice Cheeks, NBA All-Defensive First Team
- Bobby Jones, NBA All-Defensive Second Team
- Moses Malone, All-NBA First Team