IS LAMENTING OVER THE LATISSIMUS
Like just about every team the Sixers have faced this season, the Chicago Bulls will be without some key players tonight when they visit the Welss Fargo Center.
Chicago (18-5) will have to play without forward Luol Deng (15.9 points, 7.5 rebound), who is out with an injured left wrist and guard Rip Hamilton (14.2 points), who is nursing a sore right thigh.
The Sixers will be without starting center Spencer Hawes, who is missing his ninth-straight game with a strained left Achilles. Whe asked, again, when Hawes might be able to return, Collins sympathetically said the decision is up to Hawes.
"You're talking to a guy who, as a player, was questioned about pain threshold," said Collins. "So I went out and tried to play with two broken feet and it ended my career. So I'm very sympathetic to injury. I will never question that."
Before the game, Hawes was doing full-court wind sprints for trainer Jesse Wright. He has been amping up the amount of activity lately, playing a lot of two-on-two and three-on-three. If the games were only halfcourt, Hawes said, he'd be fine. But it's getting up on his toes and making the cuts and re-jumps that is still hard for him.
More to come
Bob Cooney has been at the Daily News for more than 20 years, working in the sports department for the past 15. This is his third season on the Sixers beat. He has covered just about everything, but mostly college basketball, where he was the La Salle beat writer for six seasons. E-mail Bob at cooneyb@phillynews.com and follow him on Twitter.
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