Spencer Hawes Leads the Way as Sixers defeat the Denver Nuggets

Tonight, was the Philadelphia 76ers regular season home opener as they took on Andre Iguodala and the Denver Nuggets. This was the game that everybody had circled on their calendar, the return of Andre Iguodala as he was traded over the summer for Andrew Bynum in that big blockbuster trade. When the Nuggets’ starting lineup was announced Iguodala was greeted with many boos and cheers at the same time because there was mixed emotions in the arena. Some fans appreciated what Andre Iguodala did for the city, while others were mad at the comments he made about Doug Collins to the Denver media and how he wasn’t happy his last two seasons here in Philadelphia. Well, the fans let him hear it but it didn’t affect him as he would score the game’s opening bucket. Iguodala would also get a mini video tribute shown of him during the first quarter as well. Tonight, the stars had all aligned for Spencer Hawes as he was just on another level. Hawes, who came off the bench was the team’s leading scorer with 16 points to go along with 12 rebounds and five blocks. His block at the end of third quarter was a momentum shift as Nick Young dunks the ball on the fast break to increase the Sixers lead but also to get himself warmed up. The shooters were also out tonight as Dorell Wright and Jason Richardson played pretty well for their Sixers debuts. Richardson who was in the starting lineup tonight at the SG, scored 10 points and was 2 of 7 from three point range. Dorell Wright, on the other hand, who came off the bench had 14 points and seven rebounds in 28 minutes of action. Finally, let me not forget about point guard Jrue Holiday was only four rebounds short of a triple-double. Holiday finished the night with 14 points, 11 assists, and six rebounds. If the Sixers can get this kind of production out of Holiday then they will be fine. On the opposing side, the former Sixers on the Denver Nuggets had respectable numbers as well. Point guard Andre Miller had 10 points,  seven rebounds, and five assists. Lastly, the man of the hour Andre Iguodala had 11 points on 5 of 13 shooting in 35 minutes of action. The Sixers defeat the Nuggets 84-75 and have a record 1-0 to start the season. The next time the Sixers will play is Sunday at 12:00 pm, as they will take on the New York Knicks in an Atlantic Division game at Madison Square Garden. Jovan Alford is a staff writer for The Sixer Sense, a writer for Buzz On Broad covering the Philadelphia 76ers and Local College Basketball,  a writer for Philly Sports Nut, and is a writer for Rant Sports covering the A-10 Conference for College Basketball. Follow me on twitter @Jovan10 for Sixers, College Basketball, NFL, MLB, and all sports updates.