The 76ers had a new owner, Harold Katz and with him, they acquired the Superstar center Moses Malone from the Houston Rockets in the 1982-83 season.
They had a deep roster consisting of their star player Julius Erving, All-Stars Maurice Cheeks, Andrew Toney and Bobby Jones. With these players, they had dominated the league with a 65-17 record. It was Malone to be named the regular season Most Valuable Player.
In an interview with Malone, they misinterpreted his answer “Fo, Fo, Fo” when he was asked how will they do in the postseason thinking he is trying to say that they would sweep all the opponents instead he really meant is to win 4 games in each round.
They swept the New York Knicks in the first round and defeating the Milwaukee Bucks in five games in second round. The Sixers would advance to win their 3rd NBA title(2nd in Philadelphia) as they swept the Los Angeles Lakers.
Malone was also named the Playoffs MVP and their record 12-1 in the playoffs would be the second best in the history just after the 2001 Lakers that went to 15-1.
They had a disappointing season in 1983-84 due to an early playoff exit against the New Jersey Nets in the first round. Charles Barkley arrived the next season and brought entertainment for the next eight seasons with his witty acts and controversial jokes and ways.
They would return to the Conference Finals but lost against the Celtics in five games. The next season, they advanced again in the playoffs but find themselves losing against the Milwaukee Bucks in the second round.
In 1986, they traded Malone to the Washington and the first overall pick in the 1986 Draft to the Cleveland Cavaliers that in return they acquired Roy Hinson, Jeff Ruland and Cliff Robinson.
They would return in the playoffs but lost in the first round against the Milwaukee Bucks. The next season, they failed to reached the playoffs with a 36-46 record. They acquired Charles Smith in 1988 NBA draft then traded to Los Angeles Clippers for Hersey Hawkins.
After a one-year absence in the playoffs, they qualified in the 1988-89 postseason. They faced the New York Knicks in the first round but were swept. The next season, 1989-90 season, Barkley was second in the League MVP voting and the Sixers would win the Atlantic Division in the regular season.
They defeated the Cleaveland Cavaliers in the first round. Then they faced the Michael Jordan-led team Chicago Bulls in the 2nd round and they would fall to them in five games.
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