Philadelphia Sports: Utley returns, Sixers trades and other news

In a week filled with Philadelphia sports news, here are some stories from Section 215 and some of our friends that you may have missed.

Though it may be the offseason for the vast majority of the professional sports world, it’s been a pretty eventful week in Philadelphia sports.

As the Philadelphia Phillies continue to fight for a spot atop the NL East, the City of Brotherly Love got one final opportunity to watch their favorite adoptive son, Chase Utley, take the field at Citizens Bank Park one last time after he announced his retirement at the end of the season. Needless to say, it was pretty sweet watching the Phillies take the series 2-1, especially after losing Manny Machado to the Dodgers a few days earlier.

Across the Philly sports complex, the world champion Philadelphia Eagles are officially back in business as they prepare to defend their crown for the first time this century. With a plethora of interesting storylines to watch as camp commences, like who will win the team’s slot corner role, and how the team will replace Timmy Jernigan after his recent back surgery, it’s safe to say football fever is back in the 215.

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However, it wasn’t all good news for the city’s teams.

After missing out on LeBron James and Paul George in free agency, the Philadelphia 76ers had to sit back and watch Kawhi Leonard seemingly get snatched out of their hands by another Eastern Conference team, the Toronto Raptors. Though it appears a trade was never all that close to happening, as news later broke that Pop and company wanted either Ben Simmons or Joel Embiid to be included in a potential deal, it’s still no fun to watch a superstar join a division rival, especially when it looked like Philly had a chance to lock him in thanks to his connection with Brett Brown.

But hey, that’s not all that happened in the world of Philly sports over the last week, here are a few stories you may have missed from FanSided and around the web.

Philadelphia Sports News and Notes From Around FanSided

Philadelphia 76ers wise to avoid another Jahlil Okafor situation [Section 215 – Matty Breisch]

"After an intense standoff that led to an embarrassing trade, the Philadelphia 76ers wisely avoided another Okafor-esque situation with Kawhi Leonard."

Chase Utley returning for final trip brings all sorts of emotions [Section 215 – Dan Parzych]

"Philadelphia Phillies fan got to enjoy Chase Utley one final time at Citizens Bank Park this past week with the Los Angeles Dodgers in town."

Eagles training camp preview: The defensive tackles [Inside The Iggles – Geoffrey Knox]

"There are battered bodies in the Philadelphia Eagles’ defensive tackle rotation. If old guys struggle and young guns can’t step up, there may be problems."

Pat Connaughton should be on the Sixers’ radar [The Sixers Sense – Christopher Kline]

"That’s where a name like Pat Connaughton comes into play. The former second-round pick spent three seasons with the Trail Blazers, averaging 5.4 points in 18.1 minutes per game last season. He shot 35.2 percent from deep."

More Philadelphia Sports News From Around the Internet

ESPY Awards 2018: Nick Foles’ speech, Eagles’ red carpet looks [Penn Live – Daniel Gallen]

"The sneaker industry’s longheld mantra has been that “big men don’t sell shoes.” With Joel Embiid’s expert-level dominance of social media, dating to draft night in 2014, and his potential to be named an Eastern Conference All-Star starter for years to come, several brands think the versatile 7-footer could break the mold."

What to Make of the Post-Kawhi-Trade NBA [The Ringer – Staff]

Villanova releases nonconference schedule [Philly.com – Joe Juliano]

We hope you enjoyed this edition of Section 215’s Philadelphia Sports new weekly roundup.