Sixers Bell Ringer Season Standings:
Tyrese Maxey – 23.5
VJ Edgecombe – 16
Joel Embiid – 14.5
Paul George – 10
Kelly Oubre Jr. – 6
Justin Edwards – 4
Dominick Barlow – 3
Andre Drummond – 3
Quentin Grimes – 3
Jared McCain – 3
MarJon Beauchamp – 2
Adem Bona – 1
Porter Martone – 1
Cam Payne – 1
Jabari Walker – 1
Trendon Watford – 1
15th roster spot – 1
Well, it’s over.
The Philadelphia 76ers season comes to a close in the second round of the playoffs, with the New York Knicks completing their 4-0 sweep
of the Sixers on their floor. Well, it sounded like the Knicks’ floor, but it was technically the Sixers’.
Game 4 was about as bad as it could get. The Sixers were already down more than 20 points by the close of the first frame. It just never even looked like a competitive contest. The Knicks had 81 points by halftime, holding a 24-point advantage. The Sixers players might have packed for Cancun during the break. New York sweeps Philadelphia, in Philadelphia, with a 144-114 final score in Game 4. If you are looking for a recap of the game for some sick reason, we have you covered here.
I think the reality is that we all knew this was how it would end, with a whimper. The same way this team has gone out year after year. Knocking out the Boston Celtics was nice along the way, and kudos to the players for making that happen in spite of the organizational management this season… but reality always sinks in at some point: this is not a contending team. They never were really expected to be contenders this season, but this is the harsh result of the fact that they really just aren’t. We knew it before the season even started and the organization’s front office all but confirmed it at the trade deadline.
This is where that gets you. Sure, you made the second round when you really weren’t expected to… but does it matter when this is how it ends? If nothing changes going forward?
But I digress. There will be plenty of time for all the post-mortem chatter.
For the final time of the 2025-26 season, let’s get to the Bell Ringer.
The Sixers fans
The Sixers fans are going to get criticized after the crowd distribution at Game 4, with a large majority of the crowd at Xfinity Mobile Arena donning Knicks gear. I don’t think that will be fair criticism by any means.
After years of stagnation, frustrating injuries, the same roster construction issues never being resolved, the trade deadline “strategy” (if you can even call it that) this February… Even after all of that, the Philadelphia fans showed up for the end of the regular season fight to the Play-In Tournament. They showed up all regular season, through the highs and lows. They showed for that Play-In Tournament game that sent the Sixers to the actual playoffs. They showed up in the first round, and even a bit for Game 3 of this second round despite incredibly high prices to get a seat at the game.
So no, I do not blame the Philadelphia fans for not showing up for Game 4. It would have meant giving $400 per ticket to an organization that has spit in their faces just to then watch a Sixers team get immediately outplayed into a more than 25-point deficit. The only one that put in any perceivable effort was Joel Embiid, who was actively battling through his entire body being in pain throughout. Sorry, that’s just not worth the price of admission.
If this Flyers’ run (and the cheers following their elimination) has taught us anything about the fans of Philadelphia, it’s that they are just looking for something to cheer about. Effort and heart from the organization and the team. This wasn’t that. One of the many ways in which the Sixers are not the Flyers, despite having similar playoff runs on paper these past few weeks.
All of that is to say that there’s only one candidate for the final Bell Ringer of the 2025-26 season: you. You, the fans that find a way to keep being interested in and supporting this team even when it’s been really hard to. You, the fans that keep reading and commenting on our work here at Liberty Ballers even when it would be totally reasonable to be checked-out on all things Sixers. You, the sicko Philly fan that keeps caring even when all evidence tries to convince you not to.
You are the only ones worthy of the Bell Ringer here. We appreciate you.
