The Philadelphia 76ers are an interesting franchise. They've had some of the greatest players in NBA history, play in a big market, and are generally seen as one of the league's staple organizations. The Sixers were established in the 1949-50 season as the Syracuse Nationals and became the 76ers in 1963-64.

Philadelphia has won three championships and always seems relevant, but its history of winning is shockingly sparse. Since losing the 1985 Eastern Conference Finals, Philly has reached the conference finals just once, in 2001 – winning it before losing the NBA Finals in five games to the Kobe Bryant/Shaquille O'Neal Los Angeles Lakers. They've won just one title since 1967 despite seemingly always being in the mix.

With Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey now joined by Jaylen Brown and LeBron James, the Sixers have more star power than at any point in decades. Here are the franchise’s 12 greatest players.

12 Ben Simmons

Some 76ers fans probably won't love this, but Ben Simmons sneaks onto this list at number 12. While it ended very poorly for Simmons in Philadelphia, with an ugly trade saga ultimately landing the 2018 Rookie of the Year in Brooklyn, there's no doubt he was an excellent player as a Sixer.

Andre Iguodala was a strong contender for this spot, as he spent his first eight seasons in Philly, averaged over 15 points per game, and was an All-Star in 2012. However, Simmons was simply a better player who accomplished more in his time there. Simmons won the 2018 ROY, was a three-time All-Star, a two-time First Team All-Defense selection, and an All-NBA Third Team pick in 2020**, averaging 15.9 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 7.7 assists as a Sixer**.

Simmons had some embarrassing moments in a Sixers jersey, but he won three playoff series and made the franchise relevant again. He's one of the best two-way players in franchise history.

Simmons deserves credit for helping bring Philly out of the basement alongside Joel Embiid. The chance for the 76ers to capitalize on "The Process" era is running out, but he certainly left the franchise in a better spot than it was.

11 Tyrese Maxey

Few draft picks in recent memory have proven as valuable as the 21st overall selection the Sixers spent on Tyrese Maxey in 2020. The Kentucky product has grown from a bench spark into the franchise’s leading guard, and in 2025/26 he took his game to another level.

Maxey averaged 28.3 points, 6.6 assists, and 1.9 steals that season – ranking fifth in the league in scoring – and was named an All-Star starter and to the All-NBA Third Team for the first time. He also passed Allen Iverson for the most three-pointers in franchise history and dropped a career-high 54 points against the Milwaukee Bucks.

Already the 2024 Most Improved Player and a two-time All-Star, Maxey has four 50-point games to his name and is now among the best players in the NBA right now. Still only in his mid-20s, he looks set to climb much higher on this list.

10 Maurice Cheeks

Speaking of two-way players, "Mo" Cheeks slides in at number nine for his excellence on both ends of the floor for Philly. Cheeks spent 11 seasons in Philadelphia as a do-everything point guard.

The 1978 second-round pick surpassed expectations, earning four All-Star selections, five All-Defense teams, and was a vital part of Philly's 1983 championship team. Cheeks averaged 12.2 points and 7.3 assists, and 2.3 steals as a Sixer. He did all of this on 52.8% shooting from the field, stunningly high for a six-foot-one point guard.

9 Billy Cunningham

Billy Cunningham earns the ninth spot as one of the best scorers in 76ers history. In nine years in Philly in the 60s and 70s, Cunningham averaged 20.8 points, 10.1 rebounds and 4.0 assists. The UNC product put up 18-plus points per game in seven of his nine seasons with the franchise.

A member of the 1967 title team, Cunningham contributed 15 points a game in 15 playoff outings that season. Cunningham was a phenomenal postseason scorer and rebounder his entire career, making a name for himself among a long list of 76ers greats. He then added a second ring from the bench, coaching the Sixers to the 1983 championship.

8 Hal Greer

Keeping with the theme, number eight also goes to a 1960s 76ers legend, Hal Greer. Greer, a shooting guard who stood at just six-foot-two, is one of the most underrated players of his time. Also a part of the 1967 Sixers championship squad, Greer averaged 27.7 points, 5.9 rebounds, and 5.3 assists in that playoff run.

For his career, which spanned 15 seasons with the franchise, Greer posted gaudy numbers of 19.2 points, 5.0 rebounds and 4.0 assists. He was a ten-time All-Star and seven-time All-NBA member. Greer was simply one of the very best players of the original era of NBA basketball, and he did it all in a Syracuse Nationals/Philadelphia 76ers jersey.

7 Dolph Schayes

Before the 76ers moved to Philadelphia, the franchise’s first superstar was Dolph Schayes. The forward spent his entire 16-year career with the Syracuse Nationals and 76ers, and was the driving force behind the franchise’s first championship in 1955.

Schayes was a 12-time All-Star and a 12-time All-NBA selection, six of them on the First Team, and averaged 18.5 points and 12.1 rebounds for the franchise. He became the first player in NBA history to pass 15,000 points and 10,000 rebounds, and once played in a then-record 706 consecutive games.

His influence didn’t end with retirement. Schayes coached the 76ers from 1963 to 1966, winning Coach of the Year in his final season, and was named to the NBA’s 25th, 50th, and 75th Anniversary Teams. The Sixers retired his No. 4 in 2016.

6 Moses Malone

The last true NBA all-time legend on this list is Moses Malone. Malone, who was Erving's co-star on the 1983 title team, is known for being one of the greatest rebounders in league history (his 12.3 RPG mark ranks 15th all-time). However, Malone was also an elite scorer and defender, making him a versatile superstar.

Malone played on seven NBA teams and also spent two seasons in the ABA, so he only stayed in Philly for five years. Nevertheless, he made his presence felt: 21.0 points, 12.0 rebounds, and 1.3 blocks a game for the franchise. Malone won the 1983 MVP award, as well as Finals MVP that very same season, putting him in an exclusive club of players to earn both honors.

An All-Star and All-NBA member in all four of his prime seasons in Philadelphia, Malone is squarely on the level of everyone ahead of him. His short 76ers career places him at six, however.

5 Joel Embiid

Joel Embiid is fifth on this list despite being arguably the second-best player here. Embiid is one of the more dominant scorers and rebounders ever, but his health has prevented him from becoming a true legend. Knee problems have limited him to fewer than 40 games in each of the last two seasons.

Yet when he is on the floor, he can still take over. In 2025/26, Embiid averaged 26.9 points in 38 games, then helped the seventh-seeded Sixers upset the second-seeded Boston Celtics in the first round. In the 109-100 Game 7 win, he and Maxey became the first duo ever to each post at least 30 points, 10 rebounds and five assists in a Game 7.

Still, Embiid is surely an all-time great player. He’s fourth in career PPG at 27.6, has been top-two in MVP voting three times, and won the 2023 MVP award. When healthy, he’s the most dominant face-up scorer in the sport, with a buttery mid-range jumper that’s absurd for a player his size.

Embiid is also a tremendous rebounder (10.8 per game for his career), and a solid defender, although his foot speed has declined. Being slow and oft-injured is a tough combination in the modern fast-paced NBA, but at his best, few players in the franchise’s history can match him.

4 Charles Barkley

At fourth is Charles Barkley, who is an underrated NBA legend because of his lack of a championship. This is a theme with many of the Sixers best all-time players, but there's no reason to discredit Barkley's legacy. Since retiring, Chuck has become extremely popular as a media presence, but his playing career was more dominant than you think.

In eight seasons as a 76er, Barkley averaged 23.3 points and 11.6 rebounds on a stunning 57.6% from the field. Despite standing just six-foot-six, Barkley is one of the best rebounders in NBA history, and did his best work during his Philly days. Charles was an incredible mix of toughness, strength, and speed, while being a highly skilled scorer for his time.

His skillset would be perfect for the modern game. Although Barkley never won a championship, he was an outstanding playoff performer for Philadelphia, which shouldn't be forgotten. He won five playoff series as a Sixer during a difficult era and simply ran into the titans of the era time and time again.

3 Allen Iverson

At number three, I'll go with the most popular and well-known Sixer of all-time, both inside and outside the fanbase. Although Allen Iverson never won a championship (largely because of inferior rosters to the Spurs, Lakers, and others), Iverson left a lasting impression on the league that was bigger than basketball.

First, the numbers: Iverson averaged 27.6 points as a Sixer (which would rank among the highest career marks in league history) to go with 6.1 assists a night. AI was never efficient (42.1% from the field), but that wasn’t uncommon for a small scoring guard in the 90s and 2000s, especially one who barely cracked six feet on an undermanned roster.

Iverson's 2001 MVP season, when he took Philly to the NBA Finals on a legendary run, is one of the more inspiring seasons in league history. His 48-point Game 1 NBA Finals performance to take down Shaq and Kobe, ending with the step-over of Tyronn Lue, is perhaps the most iconic cultural basketball moment ever.

The Answer spent his career giving hope to young kids everywhere that they could play basketball despite being undersized. His cultural influence on basketball is limitless, and still reverberates today.