Thursday, January 17, 2008

Sixers to honor Bobby Jones

The 76ers will continue to celebrate 1982-83 Championship team by honoring former player Bobby Jones, as well as the Sixers’ 1982-83 Media Relations Director Harvey Pollack and former Assistant Coach and Director of Player Personnel Jack McMahon during halftime of the game against the Indiana Pacers on Monday, January 21, 2008.

The ceremony honoring Jones, Pollack and McMahon marks the second of four nights this year dedicated to the 25th anniversary of the 1982-83 NBA Championship team. The Sixers game against the Indiana Pacers will serve as a backdrop for this special day, as Jermaine O’Neal leads the Pacers into the City of Brotherly Love.

A key component on the Sixers 1982-83 title team, Jones was named that season’s NBA Sixth Man of the Year, averaging 9.0 points per game on .543 shooting from the field, to go with 4.6 rebounds per game. Former teammate Julius Erving once said of Jones, “He’s a player who’s totally selfless, who runs like a deer, jumps like a gazelle, plays with his head and heart each night, and then walks away from the court as if nothing happened.”

Pollack has spent most of his adult life as a member of the Sixers organization. His career actually began in 1946, when was tabbed assistant publicity director for the Philadelphia Warriors. The 85-year-old NBA Hall of Famer is in his 60th season of work in the NBA, which makes his career as old as the NBA itself. Pollack was a part of both the 1966-67 Sixers title team and the 1982-83 team.

McMahon served as an assistant coach and director of player personnel for the 1983 team. McMahon is credited with adding some of the key elements to that 1982-83 squad, including the discovery of a feisty point guard by the name of Maurice Cheeks from little known West Texas State. He passed away in 1989, while serving as an assistant coach for the Golden State Warriors, and will be represented at the game by his wife Kay.

The day will feature a special halftime presentation to Jones, Pollack and McMahon’s wife Kay. Also part of the game’s festivities, the Sixers will wear their adidas Hardwood Classics uniforms from that historic 1982-83 season for the fifth time this year. The replica throwback jerseys will be available for sale at the Fan Gear store located inside the Wachovia Center.

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