Kyle Lowry gets ovation, calls Sixers debut 'great moment' - ESPN

PHILADELPHIA — Kyle Lowry may not have dreamed of playing for his hometown Philadelphia 76ers, but he admitted that stepping onto the court for the first time in a Sixers uniform and receiving a standing ovation Thursday night was a «great moment» in what ultimately was a 110-96 loss to the New York Knicks.

«It was great,» Lowry said after finishing with 11 points, 4 rebounds and 5 assists in 25 minutes off the bench. «Unfortunately, we didn't play as well as I think we can.

»But it was an amazing atmosphere and the ovation that I got was awesome. I was happy. I was pissed that we lost and we were in that situation, but it was a great moment. Now for me it's about winning basketball games."

There hasn't been a lot of that in recent weeks for Philadelphia (32-23), which is now 6-15 this season without reigning MVP Joel Embiid and has lost six of its last eight games overall. But the hope here is that with Lowry now on the court, along with Nicolas Batum (hamstring) and De'Anthony Melton, who will return Friday against Cleveland after missing several weeks with a back injury, the 76ers will be able to start stabilizing themselves as they wait for Embiid to potentially return from a knee injury.

And Lowry's impact was immediately evident, as he was flying around the court making one play after another in his first game since Jan. 18, when he was playing for the Miami Heat before being traded to the Charlotte Hornets in a deal for Terry Rozier, all while trying to claw Philadelphia out of a double-digit hole the 76ers were in from virtually the opening moments of the game.

«He was really good,» said 76ers coach Nick Nurse, who spent almost a decade with Lowry in Toronto as both an assistant and head coach. «He fought hard.