PHILADELPHIA (AP) Allen Iverson is out for the rest of the regular season.

The Philadelphia 76ers announced Tuesday their All-Star guard will miss the final eight games because of persistent pain in his right knee, the same injury that kept him out of 13 of the last 19 games.

An MRI showed a small lesion under Iverson's knee cap, but there was no meniscal or ligament damage.

``It was better now to sit him down so it doesn't linger a lot longer,'' said team president Billy King. ``It's probably best to get it where his knee is 100 percent. It's not a situation where Allen doesn't want to play. His knee just keeps swelling up.''

The injury comes with the Sixers in danger of being eliminated from the playoff race. Philadelphia is 10th in the Eastern Conference, but beat Golden State 95-71 Tuesday night.

King said Iverson's health would be re-evaluated if the Sixers make the playoffs.

``Worst case scenario, surgery would be an option if it does not calm down,'' King said. ``Rest and rehabilitation hopefully will do it.''

The injury was diagnosed Monday by New York Giants team doctor Russell Warren, who Iverson consulted for a second opinion.

King said the swelling affected Iverson's movement and quickness.

Messages left for Iverson and his agent, Leon Rose, were not immediately returned. Iverson was at the arena before the game, though he was not on the bench against the Warriors.

Iverson has now missed 27 games this season, the most in his eight-year career, and the Sixers are 13-14 without him. The underachieving Sixers have been ravaged by injuries this season, enough to cost rookie coach Randy Ayers his job after only 52 games. Interim coach Chris Ford has battled with Iverson since he taking over.

Earlier this month, Iverson refused to come off the bench in Toronto after he was told he was not going to start.

King said those clashes had nothing to do with Tuesday's decision.

``He wants to play. What he doesn't want is people saying he doesn't want to play because of Chris Ford,'' King said. ``He loves to play basketball.''

Iverson, a five-time All-Star, continues to be the subject of trade speculation in Philadelphia. He signed an extension before the season that lasts through 2008-09.

The Sixers have been playing well recently without Iverson, the NBA's second-leading scorer averaging 26.4 points. The Sixers have a seven-game home winning streak and have won four of five overall.

``We've been playing without Allen for a while now in hopes he would be back,'' Ford said. ``You just keep playing. The schedule keeps coming.''

Iverson was the NBA's MVP in 2000-01, when he led the 76ers to the Eastern Conference championship for the first time since 1983. He is scheduled to play for the United States at the Athens Olympics in August.

Everyone has an opinion about Allen Iverson. Now, Dr. Russell Warren will have one. The 76ers' star guard visited the New York Giants' orthopedic surgeon yesterday to get a fresh evaluation of the right knee injury that has kept him out of the last four games and has contributed to his having missed 12 of the last 18.

While Iverson was in New York with Jim McNulty, the Sixers' director of sports medicine, president/general manager Billy King was adjusting Iverson's official status in a brief gathering with reporters at Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine.

King said Iverson was being listed as "out'' of tonight's game against the Golden State Warriors, but added, "Just to clear up his status, he'll probably be out indefinitely, until we can come up with a timetable.''

In essence, with eight games remaining in the regular season, there is virtually no difference between Iverson's status being termed "day-to-day'' and "out indefinitely.'' King said Iverson had not suffered a setback, but that he still was struggling with pain and swelling in the knee.

The Philadelphia 76ers just might be a better team without Allen Iverson.

In their last eight games minus the injured Iverson, the Sixers are 7-1 and have moved back into the playoff race in the Eastern Conference. The All-Star guard is sidelined with a sore right knee, an injury that might not have kept him out of the lineup in past years.

The Sixers (31-42) beat Dallas, Phoenix and Cleveland this week after losing their previous three games with Iverson. His status for the remaining nine games is uncertain.

``I think that they are just getting after it,'' interim coach Chris Ford said after Friday night's 86-71 victory over the Cavaliers. ``They enjoy playing with one another right now. They're just working hard. Whoever we have left standing is out there working hard.''

The Sixers had won four straight games before Iverson clashed again with Ford, who took over on an interim basis after Randy Ayers was fired on Feb. 9. Iverson refused to play in a loss to Detroit on March 14 after being told by Ford he would come off the bench because he had missed the previous three games with an injury.

Iverson's first confrontation with Ford came when he was fined for missing practice one day after playing in the All-Star game.

After sitting on the bench in street clothes in Detroit, Iverson returned the next game and the Sixers lost the three games he played, before he went out again. One year after playing all 82 regular-season games for the first time in his career, Iverson has missed a career-high 25 games to various injuries.

``Why is it just without Allen? We have four guys out,'' point guard Eric Snow said. ``You're going to talk about who's out, talk about everybody. It's a team game. That's why we have 12, 13 guys.''

Iverson is joined on the sideline by forward Glenn Robinson (elbow) and centers Marc Jackson (foot) and Derrick Coleman (knee). Still, the Sixers are within 1{ games of the Celtics for the final playoff spot. They play at Boston on Sunday night.

The Sixers, who went to the NBA Finals in 2001 and have made the playoffs the last five years, are 9-2 without Iverson and Robinson, their two top scorers.

``The movement of the ball has been fun to watch from the sidelines and just the ball movement and the open shots we're getting and the unselfishness, it's contagious out there,'' Ford said.

The Sixers are playing a more team-oriented style without Iverson, who has often been criticized throughout his career for taking too many shots and playing selfishly. Iverson, the NBA's second-leading scorer with an average of 26.4 points, is averaging 23.4 shots a game.

Second-year pro John Salmons has stepped up his play in Iverson's absence, scoring a career-high 22 points against Cleveland after getting 21 against Dallas.

Forward Kenny Thomas has become the team's go-to guy, averaging 19.1 points and 13 rebounds in 13 games this month.

Center Samuel Dalembert has established himself as a solid player, posting double digits in points and rebounds in consecutive games and five times this month, including a 23-point, 14-rebound performance against the Suns on Wednesday.

Though it's difficult to imagine any team could be better without a five-time All-Star and former league MVP, the Sixers have proved they don't need Iverson to win games. Even though he insists he won't to try to trade Iverson, general manager Billy King probably will seek offers for the one-time franchise player.

Iverson, who turns 29 in June, will be difficult to trade, however. He signed a $76.7 million, four-year contract extension in September that takes him through the 2008-09 season.

PHILADELPHIA (AP) Philadelphia 76ers guard Allen Iverson was inactive for Friday night's game against Cleveland, the third straight game he has missed with a sore right knee.

Iverson missed Monday's win against Dallas and Wednesday's victory over Phoenix after playing in the team's three previous losses. The Sixers are 6-1 in their last seven games without the All-Star guard.

Interim coach Chris Ford said before Friday's game that Iverson's status for Sunday's game at Boston is uncertain.

PHILADELPHIA (AP) Philadelphia 76ers guard Allen Iverson missed his second straight game Wednesday night because of a sore right knee.

Iverson sat out Monday night against Dallas after playing in the Sixers' three previous games.

Forward Marc Jackson missed his 47th game of the season and had an MRI earlier in the day on his injured left foot. Interim coach Chris Ford said Jackson received a hard cast on his foot and would likely miss the rest of the regular season.

Glenn Robinson can't straighten his right arm, the result of elbow surgery last week, but he hopes to play again for the 76ers before the end of the regular season.

Robinson, the Sixers' second-leading scorer with a 16.6-point average, underwent surgery last Tuesday in Birmingham, Ala., to have bone chips removed from his elbow. He rejoined the team Friday in Miami.

After last night's game against Dallas, the Sixers have 11 remaining, with their final game at Orlando on April 14 a little more than three weeks away. But Robinson hopes to return.

"I don't have a target date," he said last night before the game. "I think my target date right now is whenever it feels better and whenever I can shoot the ball.

"Scottie Pippen had the same thing, and I asked him how long it took for him. He said it took him about 21/2 to three weeks [after surgery], so I'm hoping it's not longer than that."

PHILADELPHIA (AP) Philadelphia 76ers guard Allen Iverson was inactive for Monday's game against the Dallas Mavericks because of a sore right knee.

Iverson missed three games earlier this month with a knee injury, then sat out a game on March 14 when interim coach Chris Ford wanted to keep the All-Star out of the starting lineup.

Iverson then returned to score an average of 17.7 points in the team's last three losses.

He is listed as day-to-day.

Also before Monday's game, forward Derrick Coleman was placed on the injured list with left knee tendinitis. Ford said the move may end the 14-year veteran's season.

``The games are diminishing very quickly here, so I wouldn't be surprised,'' Ford said.

Coleman has averaged eight points and 5.6 rebounds in 34 games this season. Amal McCaskill was activated to take his spot on the roster.

His team distracted and his star player feeling insulted that his coach would bring him off the bench instead of starting him, 76ers president and general manager Billy King flew here yesterday to try to calm the commotion.

King met with Allen Iverson for about an hour to discuss Iverson's displeasure with coming off the bench, as interim head coach Chris Ford suggested Sunday, and redirect him to the goal at hand, which is to make the playoffs.

"I think we had a good conversation, I really do," King said before last night's game against the Memphis Grizzlies, which Iverson started. "We both did a lot of talking. It wasn't a heated conversation.

"We hadn't had a chance to talk, and that's one reason I came here. I really didn't want to talk via telephone. I wanted to have a chance to talk with him face-to-face."

King said that he spoke briefly with Ford yesterday, and that the two would meet again today in New Orleans, where the Sixers play the Hornets tonight.

King hadn't planned on being with the Sixers for their four-game road trip. But he decided to travel to address Sunday's controversy, in which Iverson sat out the game in Detroit after rejecting Ford's plan to bring him off the bench.

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) Philadelphia 76ers guard Allen Iverson was in the starting lineup Tuesday night against the Memphis Grizzlies, two days after sitting out a game rather than come off the bench.

Iverson, Philadelphia's leading scorer with 27 points a game, missed three straight games with a swollen right knee before Sunday's matchup against the Detroit Pistons. He said he was ready to play and was in uniform but changed his mind when interim coach Phil Ford told him he'd be a reserve. Iverson watched the game from the Sixers bench in street clothes. The All-Star guard said he was a starter, not a sixth man.

Ford said he was trying to protect Iverson from aggravating the injury.

Sixers president and general manager Billy King, who came to Memphis to soothe the situation, talked to Iverson for about an hour Tuesday afternoon.

``We're trying to move forward,'' King said. ``The sun came up today. He's going to start. We're going to play, and try to get a win.''

Iverson was not available for comment before Tuesday's game, but King said they discussed the relationship between coach and player, Philadelphia's drive to the playoffs and trade rumors involving Iverson. King came to Memphis to talk to Iverson face-to-face rather than by telephone.

``The bottom line is, I think Allen understands what the goal is at hand,'' King said. ``That's to try to get in the playoffs and do as well as we can there.''

But King acknowledged the matter was getting in the way of that goal. He said the showdown between coach and player had been ``very very distracting.''

As for the trade rumors, King assured Iverson there is ``no intention'' of trading him. ``He said, 'Billy, I want to be Sixer. This is where I want to be. I want to die a 76er. I don't want to leave Philadelphia.'''

King had not talked at length with Ford, but expects to discuss the matter with him Wednesday.

Ford, who has dealt with the issue for the past two days, wasn't interested in dwelling on it before facing the Grizzlies.

``I'm just coaching, that's all I'm doing,'' Ford said. ``It's always over for me at the end of the day. It's a new day everyday.''

Allen Iverson's reign of error is coming to a close in Philadelphia.

Come summer, look for the 76ers to deal him to a team that can afford him and is willing to tolerate the baggage that now outweighs his points.

The bidding is not likely to be fierce, even if the 76ers throw in five years' supply of aspirin for the next coach.

That's not to say there won't be several teams interested in Iverson and his 27 points- per-game career scoring average _ second among active players to Shaquille O'Neal's 27.2.

Plenty of teams could use a scorer like that. The question is whether they want his attitude, his selfishness, his injuries and his $91.4 million salary over the next five years. For many teams, Iverson may not be The Answer.

The other stumbling block in any trade is whether another team has the player or players Philadelphia will want in return, though at this point the 76ers are likely to settle for less simply to end a relationship that has gone sour.

The Sixers and Iverson know it's time to say goodbye, to give up on the pretense that they're all one big happy family. Iverson found a home in Philadelphia, built a mansion and had an adoring fan base. But all the reasons for staying are giving way to greater reasons for leaving.

The Sixers have gone as far as they can with him _ they reached the NBA finals three years ago _ and they're on the down slope now as they drift out of playoff contention.

Iverson will turn 29 in June after eight seasons in the league, all in Philadelphia, but his lifestyle, size and high-impact game may age him prematurely. He's missed 22 games so far this season with various injuries and ailments.

He wore out Larry Brown, rode over Randy Ayers and now is butting heads with no-nonsense interim coach Chris Ford.

The latest clash came Sunday when Iverson, out for three straight games with a swollen right knee, refused to come off the bench after Ford told him he wouldn't start against the Detroit Pistons.

Iverson stripped off his tape, changed out of his uniform and watched from the bench in street clothes as his team got pummeled 85-69.

``I'm a starter. I've been a starter here for eight years. I'm not a sixth man,'' Iverson said, his ego bruised more than his knee.

Ford wasn't buying into Iverson's rant and wasn't about to let him get away with doing whatever he liked. In Ford's mind, if Iverson couldn't run full court in practice, he wasn't ready to start in a game.

``I was concerned that if he would go out there and try to play, we could now lose him for another five games down the road,'' Ford said. ``I want to see him get out there and compete and go up and down in a scrimmage first. I'm looking out for the good of A.I., plus the good of the team. That's what my job is to do. Somebody's got to make decisions around here.''

Ford and Iverson have had a rocky relationship since the coach replaced Ayers on Feb. 9. Ford has fined Iverson twice, first for missing a practice, then for missing a home game, both times because Iverson didn't personally call to explain his absence.

Call that bullheaded on Ford's part or call it brave. Ford's days with the Sixers may be numbered, too, but he deserves coach of the year consideration for standing up to Iverson.

Whether Ford stays or someone else comes in, the end seems near for Iverson in the city that is losing its brotherly love for him. By midday Monday, a poll by the Philadelphia Inquirer asking fans to vote on who was wrong here _ the Sixers, Iverson or both _ had 72 percent saying Iverson, 16 percent the Sixers and 12 percent both.

So where else might Iverson play next season?

At least three teams are possible contenders: Atlanta, San Antonio and the Los Angeles Lakers.

Atlanta has a shot, with tons of salary cap room after cleaning house. Under new ownership, the Hawks are desperate for a box office draw to fill thousands of empty seats.

If the wheels fall off the Lakers _ Kobe Bryant could leave as a free agent and so could several other players and coach Phil Jackson _ Iverson might find himself taking his act to Hollywood and teaming up with O'Neal.

Strangely, though, the best place for Iverson might just be the most unlikely: San Antonio.

The Spurs have salary cap room and might look to make a deal for Iverson if they don't win the championship again. They could even get him at an affordable price because they could take on his contract without having to trade back an equivalent amount of salary.

San Antonio is a city of straight arrows, from coach Gregg Popovich to superstar Tim Duncan. Yet, it is there, perhaps, that Iverson might be able to park his ego a bit, holster his shooting hand a little, and flourish with a chance to win a championship ring.

He and the Sixers know that won't happen in Philadelphia.

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Steve Wilstein is a national sports columnist for The Associated Press. Write to him at swilstein(at)ap.org