Philadelphia 76ers forward Shavlik Randolph broke his left ankle at practice Thursday and was taken by ambulance to a hospital.

Randolph lost his balance near the end of practice and suffered the gruesome injury. Practice came to an immediate stop and Randolph, in his second-year out of Duke, was taken out on a stretcher and whisked to Roxborough Memorial Hospital.

"It's like a Joe Theismann thing," Sixers swingman Andre Igudola said, referring to the famous televised hit on the Redskins quarterback in 1985.

"I saw players just running around and screaming," coach Maurice Cheeks said. "It was something bad. I've never seen anything like it in my life."

Maurice Cheeks wants Samuel Dalembert to be a more physical, dominant interior defender.

Dalembert's response?

?I'm lost. I'm lost,? said Dalembert after yesterday's 76ers practice. ?I'm confused what he means by physical play. Actually, I'm getting in foul trouble, so I want to know exactly what physical play means.

?If you mean offensively, my job is not really to be an offensive player. That's what I've been told. In terms of defense, yes, there's a lot of stuff. ... Usually, I don't get my fouls on my man ? I get my fouls on helping out or when somebody's not rotating. That's tough.?

Allen Iverson elected not to show up to a mandatory meet-and-greet at a Philadelphia bowling alley on Wednesday.  He will be fined by the club.

"We would have liked him to be there, but he wasn't, and that was his choice,'' Cheeks said. "I can't speculate on why he wasn't there, but he wasn't there.''

A source reported Iverson was upset when he left practice earlier in the day, less than an hour after the 11 a.m. start at Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine.

After practice, Cheeks said Iverson had left early because he "was a little fatigued.''

The Philadelphia 76ers have assigned rookie guard Bobby Jones and second-year guard Louis Williams to their NBA Development League affiliate Fort Worth Flyers.

"This is a perfect time for Louis and Bobby to go to the NBA Development League," said 76ers Senior Vice President of Basketball Operations Tony DiLeo. "It is the start of the season where they can gain valuable playing time and also apply the things that they have learned with us. This experience will benefit their individual development and help the organization in the long run."

A 6-foot-7, 215-pound forward, Jones has played in four games this season with Philadelphia, logging a total of five minutes. Selected by the Minnesota Timberwolves in the second round (37th overall) of the 2006 NBA Draft, the 76ers acquired Jones on draft-night in exchange for a 2007 second round draft pick and cash considerations.

The 76ers still don't know when Chris Webber will return to their lineup, but it definitely won't be tonight when the Sixers play in Cleveland, the Courier Post Online is reporting.

Webber has missed the previous four games with lower back stiffness and soreness.

There's a chance that Steven Hunter could return tonight. Hunter has also missed four games with a right knee sprain. Sixers coach Maurice Cheeks said Hunter tried to practice on the knee during the day, but still felt some discomfort.

"Chris still has not tried (to practice), so his back is very sore," Cheeks said. "I can't say how long he'll be out. It's certainly safe to say Chris will not play (today). I'm not sure about Steven."

Allen Iverson scored 46 points in his first game following dental surgery in the Sixers' 123-108 victory over Chicago.

He finished 15-for-30 from the floor, made 16 of 17 free throws, including his first 14, and added 10 assists for good measure.

Playing without Allen Iverson and Chris Webber, Andre Iguodala and the short-handed 76ers outplayed the Milwaukee Bucks for almost 47 minutes. Veterans Michael Redd and Ruben Patterson stopped that just in time.

Redd scored 11 of his 32 points in the fourth quarter and the Bucks overcame Iguodala's triple-double to beat Philadelphia 98-94 on Wednesday night.

"We were all just tired and fed up from losing close games," Redd said. "We know we still have a monster hole to work out of at 4-8. It's nothing to be happy about, but hopefully this will give us a good vibe."

Iguodala stepped up with 18 points, 16 rebounds and 10 assists for his second career triple-double.

"It just don't feel right," Iguodala said. "It's a tough loss."

Philadelphia starters Allen Iverson and Chris Webber did not travel with the 76ers for their game in Milwaukee on Wednesday night, while the Bucks were without starting point guard Mo Williams.

Allen Iverson will miss tonight's game against the Detroit Pistons after undergoing successful oral surgery this afternoon to remove an abscessed wisdom tooth.  

Iverson's status for tomorrow night's game at Milwaukee is undetermined.

Maurice Cheeks continues to deal with the comments made over the lack of playing time and is still taking a hard line.

?Fifteen years ago, I could play 40 minutes, too. We're all never the same as we get older. We can never do the things we could do years ago. I don't think Chris is at that point. I think Chris feels like he can still play, and we certainly feel like he's a big part of our team and we feel that he can still play.?