Sixers fans who have been watching the team on the regular for the last couple of seasons are well aware of "Old Man Knees," also known to his friends and family as Alan Horwitz.
"The players call me ‘Papi' and Kendall Jenner calls me ‘Papi,'" Horwitz said today.
But basketball fans from around the country got a taste of Horwitz's intense fandom when he was shown repeatedly on the telecast sitting courtside for Games 1 and 2 in Toronto. He was impossible to miss, holding up a Sixers sign after almost every positive Philly play.
NBC Sports Philadelphia's Marc Farzetta sat down with Horwitz on Thursday prior to the die-hard Sixers fan sitting courtside later this evening in his regular seats next to the Sixers bench.
Horwitz, who has been a Sixers fan since the 1960s, shared tales of his beefs over the years with opposing stars like Kobe Bryant and Rajon Rondo but also fellow opposing fans such as Drake.
Drake had some words for Horwitz up in The Six.
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"[Drake] was giving it to me the first game [in Toronto]. He was sitting in my seat on the other side. As I'm holding up the flag in Game 1, he's giving me this ‘blah, blah, blah.' He's giving me all that stuff, then I start giving it back in the second game."
Another famous Sixers fan, Kevin Hart, reached out to Drake on Twitter to see if the musician will be at the Wells Fargo Center this evening for Game 3. We'll find out around tip-off.
Some call him "Old Man Knees," some call him "The Sixth Man," some call him "Papi." Whatever he's called, Horwitz wants to see this Sixers team win as much as anybody. He got a special promise from the Sixers' ownership.
"When we win the championship, I was promised I'm going into the locker room to celebrate with the players and I get the same ring the players get, from Mr. Josh Harris," Horwitz said.
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