Center City And Camden Among Possibilities For New Sixers Arena

PHILADLEPHIA, PA — You have to hand it to them. Every offseason, it seems, the Sixers find a new way to make the Process a little more interesting. And after another reorganization of their roster this offseason, a newly circulated survey has reignited talks that the team may seek to move on from their home at the Wells Fargo Center.

The survey lists three locations as possible alternatives for a new Sixers arena, once their current lease at the Wells Fargo Center ends in 2031. The three options are the Philadelphia Navy Yard, the former Market East (now dubbed "Fashion District") at 8th and Market, and, most intriguingly, an undetermined location across the bridge in Camden. The news was first reported by BillyPenn.

The Sixers have not elaborated further on their plans beyond repeating past public statements that they are looking into "options" for 2031.

That the Sixers would be open to a new home is, after all, nothing new. There's been an appeal to Camden ever since their practice facility opened there in 2016, at the time the nation's newest and largest NBA facility of its type. A plan to redevelop the Penn's Landing area to include a new arena was discarded in 2020, but turned heads around the region.

The latest survey is notable for several reasons. Chief among them is the persistence in the notion that Sixers are seriously exploring a new home, obstensibly one that would see them divorce from the Flyers, with whom they have shared the Spectrum and later the Wells Fargo Center since the 1960s.

Secondly is the idea that the Sixers, like the New York Giants and Jets, could move across the river to another state. It could revolutionize Camden's ongoing attempts at revitalization, while doubtlessly miffing Philadelphians and leading to questions about whether the "Philadelphia" appelation would even remain.

For now, the Process will remain in South Philadelphia, where Joel Embiid will be joined by yet another new iteration of Sixers for the 2022-23 season as they seek an elusive NBA title.