Iguodala doesn't want to overburden ailing knee

A couple of hours before last night's game, a statement was handed out in the press room saying 76ers forward Andre Iguodala would not play against the Atlanta Hawks.

A few minutes later, it was revealed that it was a mistake. A few more minutes later, the media were told Iguodala would dress and attempt to play.

The statement saying he wouldn't play was just a miscommunication, an honest mistake. But the way those few minutes went could be a microcosm for what the rest of the season will be like for Iguodala, who is battling tendinitis in his right knee.

When the starters were announced before the game, Iguodala was among them. He played 36 minutes and scored 16 points.

Iguodala was given off Saturday night in Portland, the last of a five-game road trip, to give his knee ample rest before last night's game. As with everything in life, his knee troubles will keep him as day to day.

"I had a good 2 days' rest, Sunday and Monday, and tried to give it a little work [Tuesday] to see where it's at," Iguodala said after yesterday morning's shootaround. "It is what it is, so we'll see. I'll just try to play through it, so we'll see where it's at and how I can play on it."

The only real cure for Iguodala now is something he cannot afford - rest.

"I listen to what he says to me," said coach Doug Collins, himself limited during his career because of foot injuries. "I've learned through my own experiences. Only you know how you feel. I'm going to be really wary of his playing time. I think it's going to be something that is going to be really sore for the rest of the year. From everything that I understand, from what the doctors have told me, it's going to be something that, until he rests for a couple of months, it's going to be sore. So we're going to have to manage that. We're going to have to keep it strong and really try not to overplay him.

"What happened, in fairness, is that we played those three overtime games in that one stretch [of 9 days this month]. We had Golden State, Oklahoma City and Utah, and his minutes were too many, and that's on me. But at the same time, you're trying to win games. So I got put in the trick bag a little bit, because those games went into overtime. And you're going to want him [to defend] against [the other team's best players]. All those great players play heavy minutes, and I got caught with Dre out there and that's a reason it flared up a little bit."

For now, Iguodala knows the rest of his season will be a daily coin flip as to whether he's a go.

"Rest will help a little bit, but it won't cure it, it's still there," he said. "We're just going to see how it is. If it's bothering me, then I won't practice. Just trying to get rest down the stretch is what really matters. If I can help the team win, I'll be out there."

Collins has said many times how important Iguodala's overall play is for his team, but pressed as to whom else he'll mostly lean on Collins didn't hesitate.

"Oh, Elton Brand," the coach said. "He's indispensable. He gives us a presence inside, his rebounding, just overall being out there. That's why he and Dre are our leaders. They're our most experienced guys."

He then explained why he will call on two players who haven't seen much time this season.

"And that's why I said I'm hoping to get Tony [Battie] out there healthy and Noc [Andres Nocioni], because they're the guys who have been around, too."

This time last year, Jrue Holiday was a rookie guard without a care in the world, finally starting at the point for a team playing out the string, gaining valuable playing time.

Now toward the end of his first year as a full-time starter, Holiday says he doesn't feel all that much different from last year.

"I don't feel a lot differently, because this time last year I was starting, too, but then there was no pressure," he said. "We knew we weren't going anywhere. This year, we're focused on what's going to happen after the season ends, and that's the playoffs. "

And what about those playoffs?

"For me, it's the unknown, with a little bit of excitement," Holiday said. "Because the people who have been to the playoffs, they've described how crazy it is, how amazing it is, how much of a different atmosphere it is."

Rookie forward Craig Brackins was sent down to the Springfield Armor, of the NBA Development League. It is the third time he has been sent down this season . . . The Sixers play at Miami tomorrow night in what could be a preview of a first-round playoff series . . . After starting the season 1-4 at home, the Sixers have gone 22-7 since . . . The team returns home on Sunday for a noon game against the Sacramento Kings. *