Julius Erving Says Good Bye to the Spectrum

Visit www.nba.com/video for more highlights. Julius Erving spends one final night in the Philadelphia Spectrum as he reflects on his time with the 76ers.

[@surfshack2]

Only went to one game and saw the Doc at the Spectrum in 1980 against the Phoenix Suns on a Sunday afternoon. Sixers lost to a good Suns team that day but Daryl Dawkins had an amazing game with 34 points and the Doc scored 30. Saw many Friday night games on Prism back in the late 70's early 80's. I loved those times. Best time of my life. Remember when they made to the Finals against LA in 1980. I remember being so excited thinking this was the year they were going to do it!! I don't know why but the 1980 Finals really stand out in my memory. Anyways, The Doc was the best. The greatest. He really was. Thanks for all the memories Doc, we loved it!! We really did!

[@pandelson]

This little clip shows what a great man Julius Erving is. You don't see that kind of humbleness in players anymore.

[@interstategar]

I've stood right where Doc stood at center court on the Spectrum logo. It was pretty cool and it was right after a Sixer game. I also saw Led Zeppelin, Neil Young, The Eagles, Bob Dylan/The Band, James Taylor, The Allman Brothers, Humble Pie, The Faces, and more. Was a great place...

[@rolandorodriguez5436]

interstategar There is a lot of WWE Live events in Philadelphia at the Spectrum including the people in the audience are all making a ECW chant back then

[@ramirezzavala5174]

And nwa

[@artbeitchman9399]

Played on the court in 1971 pre game to a 76ers game in high school

[@edwardfights4900]

@@rolandorodriguez5436 I saw a WCW show there in late 1998

[@HitMan1515]

I saw Rocky Balboa and Apollo Creed fight at The Spectrum. Great memories and a helluva fight.

[@pinebarrenpatriot8289]

You're lying because the fight scenes in Rocky were filmed in LA. Anyone from Philly knew that wasn't the Spectrum right away

[@joeblack4209]

FAIL 🤡

[@pinebarrenpatriot8289]

@@joeblack4209 lol, that scene was in LA, youtubers 🤣

[@hippoboy9793]

@@pinebarrenpatriot8289 relax you missed the joke

[@SINOJAY]

I saw doc play only one time when he was with the squires(aba), but that one time blew my mind, and made me a fan for life. Best of all times, thanx, doc. Much love and respect!

[@dcfan1107]

Diehard Celtics fan during the 80's and even though the Celtics/Lakers matchups were great, I still preferred the Celtics/76ers games, especially when they were played in the Spectrum. Something about that hostile environment that made the game a thrill to watch. Edit - forgot to add how much respect I had for that team, too. Doc, Andrew Toney, Bobby Jones, Mo Cheeks, Chocolate Thunder to Moses and Charles Barkley....amazing talent if you ask me.

[@surfshack2]

Yep, it was intense. It was war. I hate to use the word hatred but it almost was that intense.

[@master-kq3nw]

Celtics vs 76ers that s war

[@Maratuch]

what a true class act and a real champion us sixer fans thank you dr j for making this a proud franchise that will one day be on top again

[@danielr4640]

The best player in the history of the NBA. Dr. J Definitely a true class

[@michaelcampbell5817]

Daniel R, that's Debatable who's is the greatest. Wilt, Kareem Jordan, Kobe, and Lebron. NUMBERS don't lie.

[@jonjonharreld5774]

@@michaelcampbell5817 DJ Started All Of Their Careers Without Him It Wouldn't Be Them Period...One Love Fam...

[@theequalizer9614]

@@michaelcampbell5817 Jordan

[@williampavichevich306]

This LAKER Fan respects Dr J and the 76ers Organization. Cool court.

[@jonjonharreld5774]

Same Here My Brotha...Same Here. One Love Fam...

[@darrendoyle568]

Won our first of 5 championships in the 80s in that building

[@Ih8kone]

I saw the demolition of the Spectrum. It was the absolute definition of horror show. People were cheering when they should have been crying, and they were playing/singing "God Bless America" when they should have been singing "Amazing Grace". I was mortified.

[@hondaphan4172]

I had no remorse when they brought the Vet down but it killed me to see the demolition of the Spectrum.

[@garystraits]

I was at that first game for Dr J against San Antonio. During the introductions, they dimmed the house lights and the scoreboard asked "IS THERE A DOCTOR IN THE HOUSE?" The roar was deafening. Then the Zink intrduced Doc for the first time..."EEEEEEEEEEERVING!". It was all surreal.. that legendary afro...the black and silver uniforms of the renegade Spurs..Kenon..Gervin..Paultz. I will miss that building when it's gone.

[@surfshack2]

Thanks for sharing your story. Cool! I miss those days too.

[@jonjonharreld5774]

That's What's Up...One Love Fam...

[@hondaphan4172]

Not too many games into Doc's first season in Philly I went to see them play the defending World Champion Washington Bullets at the Spectrum. Doc put on a show that night and the place was rockin' as the Sixers destroyed the Bullets 143-104.

[@sonofsarek]

I miss all the old courts: the spectrum, omni, palace, salt palace, forum, mecca, boston garden, summit, etc.

[@libertatus]

I've never visited Philadelphia but I've met quite a few from that great city and they all know their sports and positively love their teams. Though I can understand wanting or perhaps even needing a new arena tearing down the Spectrum is unthinkable. Maybe I'm being a little bit too sentimental but destroying the Spectrum essentially amounts to throwing away a museum piece. My heart-felt sympathy to the great sports fans of Philadelphia.

[@MsTexas73]

Class on the court anfdoff. More of today's players should take a page from Mr. Erving. He could have been cocky about his talents...but instead he always demonstrated how humble he was and grateful for his talents and respect for his fans.

[@AfrikanGod1]

My Fav Player of all time and the best....

[@Methadone4Life]

The Doc was a bad man no doubt. He didnt quite have the jumpshot of a Kobe or MJ but he could soar. The guy all of us kids of the 70's wanted to grow up to be.

[@KryptoChronicutelite]

Speaks as smooth as his game.

[@roderickpoorman3366]

Julius ''The Doctor'' Eeeeeerrrrrving !!!

[@gadnerN]

i realy miss him

[@ganondufus]

4:17 still one of the most amazing plays of all time!

[@danieldobrosky8378]

Where I worshipped my heroes God bless them all

[@iceboogie827]

Class.. Class. Class!!!!! Father Figure of Basketball!!!!

[@rickrobitaille8809]

🥊⚡🇨🇦

[@kanishafladger316]

#R.I.P.Kobe🏀🏀🏀🏀🏀#italy&america😇😇😇😇

[@roybishop6110]

A true American sport legend.Went through all the racism acts of the 60's and all the worldly problems and focused on his patriotism.His mom and his respect for mankind made him a humble kind focused person.I have so much respect for him.He was the originator of the slam dunk...love you doc..

[@rodneyoneal8428]

Dr. J is the best of all time 👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍

[@bobbymadera3234]

MY favorite PLAYER IN HISTORY DR J SHOWTIME NEVER WILL BE OTHER.DR J PERIOD NO QUESTIONS ASK

[@kevincrush859]

Among other events I was fortunate enough to be at the iconic Spectrum when the Sixers thumped the defending World Champion Washington Bullets 143-104 shortly after Doc arrived in Philly and also was there when Ron Hextall became the first goalie in NHL history to score an unassisted goal which just happened to enter the goal slightly to my left side(our seats were around 15 rows from the ice). That game against the Bruins had a playoff atmosphere...the place was rockin'! Yeah, the Spectrum's concourse level was too tight and it didn't have the private boxes which are commonplace today but once in your seat it blew the doors off the Wells Fargo Center. The Spectrum was our Boston Garden which was another iconic venue. I still miss the place.

[@pinebarrenpatriot8289]

I was also at the flyers bruins game when Hextal scored his first goal. The Spectrum actually did have private boxes that were all in one section several private parties and companies could rent out. Mr. Snider sat in them for every Flyers game before he passed and NBC/Comcast turned the franchise into a woke joke that will never get a dollar from me again. RIP Kate Smith.

[@clintbronson5]

Philadelphia Freedom! Shine on me...I love ya-Shine that light

[@rorygrime1202]

Julius loved basketball. He loved life more. He was an outstanding gentleman. Always had time for others. I respected him tremendously.

[@raygsbrelcik5578]

What a feeling that must be, to stroll down "Memory Lane," thinking back on the "Glory days," when they cheered. I'll bet "Julie" could even HEAR the many voices after all these years.

[@EricGentile]

hearing that zinkoff intro brought good memories back.......

[@petecapravos3044]

Excellent video clip- I'm glad they showed that great play by Erving against the Lakers and of course they had the late Dave Zinkoff introducing Ju-lee-us Errrrrrrving!

[@judeanthony3766]

I wished I would have been at the Wachovia Philadelphia spectrum arena and the Houston astrodome. I miss both stadiums. I truly remember the spectrum was filmed in the three Rocky movies. I also remember the 2001 wrestlemania at the Houston astrodome.

[@TIGHTGUY56]

man i used 2 go there allll da time ima miss it!!

[@djanthony9759]

i hate the wells fargo center the spectrum is the greatest

[@ponce1968]

two legends, Dr. J and Grover Washington Jr, RIP, an amazin sax player, no longer with us.

[@XspressivelyChic08]

Awesome Piece.. Thanks for sharing!

[@michaelshaw4852]

As a Diehard Bucks fan, lots of great (but painful) memories of those battles between the Sixers/Bucks. Many times going the distance against each other with the Sixers usually coming out ahead. Miss all those classic arenas (and the great names associated with them). The Spectrum, The Garden, The Mecca (Milwaukee), etc.

[@loutcb]

doc had the best series in history in the 76 ABA finals against Denver, who were as good as any team Jordan played against.. 37 pts,14 rbs, 4 sts, 2 blks. Know yer role!

[@doc2433]

One thing that always stuck me about the Dr was how articulate he was. He is very intelligent and he had mad skills. I sure loved him and miss him on the court.

[@theplacidfish]

i love the haunting theme that plays at the beginning of the vid.

[@phinman13]

Thank you so much for posting. I grew up watching the Sixers in Colorado. I feel in love w. ith Doc the first I saw him in the ABA play against the nuggets. He was my idol from then on. he is truly the classiest person in all of sports and I still miss him to this day.

[@moweJ]

What an excellent video, Mr. Erving was truly a class act.

[@chrisalberts9125]

should have never torn down the spectrom

[@careyconley4690]

It was outdated. Hell, the arena they replaced it with is about to get replaced.

[@generalzod7959]

@@careyconley4690 but the people of Philadelphia do not deserve a new venue.

[@careyconley4690]

@@generalzod7959 who are you to decide that, and what do you base that on?

[@generalzod7959]

@@careyconley4690 I know best.

[@careyconley4690]

@@generalzod7959 crack kills.

[@oscarforce1]

great post, wonderful to hear the intro from Dave Zinkoff of Dr. J. at 1:10 or so.

[@srpdesigns]

What a shame that almost all these legendary arenas are gone .

[@PHernandez8065]

A True Inspiration for today's youth

[@williamstalvey6920]

Never forget how nice George Mcginnis was to me @ Billy Cunninham and George's Camp in Trenton N J.....George kept his promise and told me he would see me at Omni and let me meet several players in locker room. Great Memories

[@Methadone4Life]

Yeah,why do we have to always say who is the best? Doc was MVP in his time and one of the best of all time. Just enjoy the players and the game because they go so very quick. It seems just yesterday I was in high school cheering for Doc and the Sixers against the hated Celtics. Now,I look back and miss those times. Miss MJ(both MJ's..Magic and Mike)..enjoy Kobe while he is around...before you know it he will be just like Doc is now..a wonderful memory.

[@Mark-sj3xb]

Agreed. There is no single person that is the best. You can’t compare eras and you can’t compare a center with a guard. Let’s just say they were all great. And they were.

[@CurtisJohnson4]

the spectrum is a legandary areana...and because of repairs and what not they decided to rebuild...Wilt Chamberlain also had his famous double triple double in that areana...25 points 22 rebounds 21 assists

[@rickrobitaille8809]

I was watching this and fell back when I saw this⚡

[@chocolatetownforever7537]

Some of the all time greatest sporting events happened in that building. From Dr. J., to Laettner's shot. Loved the buzzer they used there as well. Very unique sounding.

[@pinebarrenpatriot8289]

So many old classic WWF wrestling matches on KZbin at the Spectrum

[@petecapravos3044]

@@pinebarrenpatriot8289 I went to a couple of WWF cards back in the early 1980s. The Spectrum was a great place!

[@hehety123]

Truly Inspiring

[@DougJDoug]

That was my team…Doc, Moses, Cheeks, Toney, Bobby Jones, Caldwell Jones, Iavaroni, Cureton…..had many other greats over the years like World B. Free, Barkley, McGinness, but that 1983 team with Billy C as coach was my favorite team ever.

[@SkaterRingo]

Nuggets were my team in the Doctor's era, but those Sixers were easy to like. Dr. J was and is all class.

[@artbeitchman9399]

Doctor J one of a kind

[@generalzod7959]

The spectrum had that legendary, ultra-wimpy buzzer 😄

[@master-kq3nw]

spectrum temple of basketball

[@tomjones5650]

I'm 60 yo best nights of my life were in The Spectrum. 6ers, BeachBoys 4 hour show in 76. Elton, Elvis,Sinatra,The Dead,Bruce etc.etc.

[@mandk6089]

The biggest thing which comes to my mind regarding the Spectrum was the hockey game between the Flyers and the Russians in 1976. The Flyers pounded the Russians. The Flyers were so tough the Russians skated off the ice. It was priceless.

[@josephgiuffdrida5387]

It's a,real shame that .a lot of true Basketball people don't talk about the 1983 champion 76ers That was,one of the best championship teams ever They were the first team to come close to 70 wins .The swept everyone and only lost 1 game in the whole playoffs They swept the big mighty LA Lakers Made them look silly And yet Nobody talks about that team A real championship team Long Live The 1983 Championship Philadelphia 76ers

[@Chet_Brinkley]

Thank you Doc ! Your beautiful.

[@gld69]

Doctor J "The Greatest ever". Jordan, Bird, Russell and Magic would be the others on my starting five for all time.

[@WindFannel]

awesomeness 5/5

[@cr4zyftw]

great video

[@rickrobitaille8809]

Thankyou DR.J🇨🇦

[@sushh1]

wow he remembers a lot.

[@tealbluewhite]

(snipingcheese) wow you never know ALL sides of an argument until you hear other people speak. its true what you said too. they can tear down the building but not the memories.

[@Algazar]

i want Spectrum arena to live!! not to be demolished :(

[@aintallthat]

how can you demolish something so beautiful

[@chperezjr]

I understand that some arenas finish their purpose or useful life, but it has become an addiction to demolish just for opulence. And 9 times out of ten all those new expensive arenas are built with taxpayer money and rarely get privately funded.

[@ekimnal]

awesome

[@kevinr5187]

What a guy no chest thumping yelling or bullying form this guy! I think the fact that he had a special needs brother helped shape who he is…….a special person.

[@eulissbenoit5968]

sixers are American to the core.God bless my sixers

[@Micromac1632]

Doc still have a sharp brain.

[@buicklincoln]

Game 4 1980's Finals: Will never forget Musberger's call "What a move by the doctor!!!"

[@Gm_s.e]

Yeah,i wanna make an hip hop instrumental with this,soo good ^^ Like all this vid

[@boywonda3]

RIP Spectrum

[@Raabulls]

In rocky 1 and 2 the Rock who fought in that arena in part. 3 of Rocky 3

[@pinebarrenpatriot8289]

The Rocky fight scenes were filmed in LA so that wasn't actually the Spectrum. The ice rink scene was also in LA. The rest was Kensington or South philadelphia

[@tqsuited]

i'm a sucker for this kinda stuff

[@micah5ive788]

I'm confused I thought they switched arenas in 96 how was their last game in the spectrum 09?

[@jeremyd7607]

Sevin Wilson they played a tribute game in 09 just like they just did with Milwaukee

[@iess2006]

Chamberlain, Erving, Barkley, Iverson...Philly pride!

[@takmagic777]

I can't help to argue the point that if they would have KEPT UP with the maintenance, there would have been no need to move in the first place. The powers that be *left it go*, they wanted a new arena just like every other city did. :(

[@migueltxo69]

wow you dont know Dr J??? thats culture man, the first guy that dunked from the free throw line, the guy that inspired MJ, a terrific scorer and one of the greatest players ever. you should see some of his videos in youtube at least

[@gtsholl]

Basketball by Curtis Blow

[@AntiMetaLokuno]

Aww, that sucks. So MSG is the last standing historical basketball arena around huh?

[@gturcott1]

That’s my hero

[@CongTheVlogger]

why do they have to demolish it?

[@JAWrightonline]

$$$

[@careyconley4690]

Because it was outdated.

[@master-kq3nw]

To old arena 1967 year bulit but spectrum forum boston garden chicago stadium madison garden legendary arenas

[@jonjonharreld5774]

In Concert Live At The Spectrum In The Summer Of 1990 Octown 357, Michele, After 7, Troop And MC Hammer Yep...Yep Fam Fa'Life One Love Fa'Sho...

[@kprez007]

But with out Dr. J there would be no Michale Jordan...

[@kingstonban]

Absolutely

[@iess2006]

MJ got nothing to do with this video, absolutely nothing.

[@kingstonban]

@@iess2006 m j might not have anything to do with this video but he was definitely inspired by the doctor, he said it himself !!!

[@iess2006]

@@kingstonban I love to constantly hear about MJ, it's all about MJ.

[@kingstonban]

@@iess2006 i understand. I feel the same way about Julius Erving and so does alot of NBA players !!

[@moonoink]

if only they brought big shot back, he woulda mopped the floor with hip hop

[@wavenstein]

Haters love to knock my boy Kobe for bitin M.J.'s style of play. But there would be no M.J. or Kobe without the great Dr. J.

[@bb-gc2tx]

spectrum and nassau coliseum were very similar probably same architect

[@Dbusdriver71]

Athletic ability, yes. But Dr. J was even bigger off the court than he was on the court and on the court he was GIGANTIC! He did a lot of charity work and promoted the NBA. That is why he still commands so much respect. Jordan has respect on the court but no where near as much off the court; no comparison to Dr. J. And biggest of all; DR J's legend is still growing; Jordans is fading. Dr. J is still IT!

[@jungsuq]

one final night? wheres he going?

[@hlahornstaberlizer]

u rekon he could still pull off a dunk?

[@jonathanwilson1878]

There is a clip of him dunking at age 63

[@doubleAgent_003]

wow..nice

[@rickrobitaille8809]

This was Dr.js home after Ruckers ⚡🇨🇦

[@Dbusdriver71]

@altohart Its been a long time since you posted; I got distracted. I never said Dr. J is the greatest; it still chamberlain. Dr. J is the complete sportsman. Jordan is very overreated in spite of rings.

[@Bossrah]

THE SPECTRUM!!! The team of America the SIXERS!!!