PHILADELPHIA — As the 76ers wore their iconic black throwback jerseys for the first time for Saturday’s win over the Toronto Raptors, Eric Snow sat courtside with his son.

Snow is one of several former players who will roll through Xfinity Mobile Arena as the Sixers celebrate the 25th anniversary of the 2000-01 team that advanced to the NBA Finals. He was a tenacious defender and quintessential point guard, the ideal backcourt complement to dynamic scorer Allen Iverson.

The Philadelphia Inquirer caught up with Snow minutes before Saturday’s game about his memories from that season, visiting with the current Sixers, and his life today.

(This interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.)

Q: You were at the practice facility on Friday, and will be making the rounds tonight. What has this visit been like?

A: It’s always good to come back. This was the first time I really came back and was able to come to a practice and a game. It’s usually one or the other. But it’s good to be back and see the enthusiasm and get to watch the guys.

Q: Any interaction with a player that was particularly meaningful?

A: I spoke to a couple guys. I’m more familiar, obviously, with the older guys. I did a little piece with Tyrese [Maxey]. They’ll still put that out. But that was fun.

Q: When you get a chance to talk to somebody like Tyrese, what is the message you try to impart on him as a current player coming up?

A: Really, to be honest with you, nothing. It’s just, “Hey, how you doing? I support you. I’m proud of you.” I don’t try to coach him. I don’t try to parent him. I’m just a fan like anybody else. I let him know that I appreciate what he’s doing. But I also understand the work and the process, so that makes me more appreciative of what he’s doing.

Q: When you look back on the influence of that 2000-01 team on you as a person and as a player, what are the biggest things that pop into your mind?

A:More than anything, it was the enthusiasm that was going around in the city. Some people may look and see kind of what we did, but they didn’t really look at what it took to get to that point. Where the team had been before then. Before AI showed up. Before Coach [Larry] Brown showed up. Before everybody showed up.

So that made it even better. I wish we could have finished it out [with a title], but it was still a conference championship. It was still a banner. It was still a lot of fun, and the city was electric. My experience here, it’s hard to find a city that’s more passionate about their teams than being here.

Q: When you talk about the city being electric, what do you remember?

A: I mean, absolutely everywhere you go. From taking my kids to daycare to going to a store [or] going to a restaurant. Driving down the street, people pulling up beside you. The enthusiasm and the excitement was everywhere. Absolutely everywhere.

Q: Was there a moment that it clicked for you the 2000-01 team was special, or that you were in a special period of time?

A: To be honest with you, I think the first time that happened was years before. It was the first home playoff game, after I believe it had been [seven] or so years that we hadn’t been [in the postseason]. The first two games were in Orlando, and we came back here in Game 3, and I can remember, me, AI and Aaron [McKie] talking about how loud the crowd was. We had never experienced that, and how different it was from the regular season. To see that kind of transformation from where it was when we arrived to then, because that kind of stuck all the way through, was kind of interesting and good to see.

Q: People remember the highlights from that 2000-01 season, like AI stepping over Ty Lue during the Finals. Is there an under-the-radar memory that you have, either on the court or off the court?

A: I don’t really have any one thing that stands out. It’s probably more the off-the-court stuff, being together. Trust me, there’s a lot of funny stuff I can’t share. And we had a close group. We always went out to eat on the road together. We always went and hung out together. We were always together. We didn’t have cliques. We didn’t have people do all kinds of different things. We were together a lot. That bond right there kind of helped. And we always went away for training camp, too.

Q: In your post-playing career, you spent some time coaching. Catch people up on what life is like today.

A: I’m being a dad. I coach and teach basketball to youth, and I’m a dad. That’s what I do.

Q: What’s the most fulfilling part of this part of your life?

A: Just giving it back in life. So many people poured into me, so being able to pour into other people and hopefully help them be the best people first, and then player second. That’s it. I enjoy doing that.

Q: When you watch the NBA now, does anybody remind you of you?

A: I think you can find them on every team. Obviously Marcus Smart, I’ve often been compared to him a lot. A big guy in OKC like Cason Wallace. [Alex] Caruso. There’s a lot of guys that kind of do what I’ve done, but my responsibilities were different. Maybe those guys aren’t the starters anymore, but there’s still a lot of guys that play that role.

And there’s some starters that play that role, too. They just may play it more off the ball than on the ball. There’s still people out there that play that way, I believe. [Josh] Hart from the Knicks. He just doesn’t handle the ball, but it’s still kind of the same expectations and responsibilities for your team.

Q: What are your early impressions of this Sixers team?

A: It’s become even more promising, what we’ve seen without the full group being there. Hopefully, we can get everyone back and keep improving and keep getting healthier. And if we can maintain that, in the East — especially this East, that you have some teams that are down — this is the season that hopefully we can take advantage of that.

Q: Anything else you want to share about the 25th anniversary of the 2001 team?

A: It’s exciting for everybody to take part in it. Definitely excited to get all the guys together, and especially get with Coach Brown. Everybody’s getting older, so every moment you can have together is the precious one.

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