Stephen A. Smith of the Philadelphia Inquirer reports on the trades the Sixers almost made. On Monday, the Sixers traded Mutombo to the Nets for Keith Van Horn and Todd MacCulloch, but there were other deals discussed.

Last week, Mutombo was nearly a New York Knick (in a trade for Kurt Thomas and Latrell Sprewell) before he became a New Jersey Net. And, had it not been for the combination of Allen Iverson's arrest on multiple felony and misdemeanor charges, followed by subsequent arrests of Bucks forward Glenn Robinson for allegedly assaulting his ex-fiancee and Coleman for suspicion of drunken driving, Robinson could have been traded for Coleman.

Sixers GM Billy King was on the phone with Milwaukee talking about inheriting the remaining three years and $32.66 million on Robinson's contract; he was trying to trade both Mutombo and Coleman in the same week. The major stumbling block stemmed more from appearances on the police blotters than play on the court.

Meanwhile, Ashley McGeachy Fox of the Inquirer reports that the Sixers are most likely not done dealing.

After the Nets trade, Philly is in the market for a veteran big man. Preferably one who can play both the center and power forward position. A report that the Sixers were interested in trading Derrick Coleman and Harpring to Miami for Brian Grant surfaced yesterday. That was apparently false because Grant's contract was too large and for too long. But a league insider said of the possible deal: "Miami would be the best for all three parties."

There are several free-agent big men who would fit Brown's criteria for a veteran center. Houston's Kevin Willis, who turns 40 next month, is 7 feet tall and averaged 6.1 points in 52 games, including five starts. Dean Garrett also is available. Minnesota traded the 6-11 Garrett to Golden State in February, and in 34 games last season, he averaged 1.1 points and 1.7 rebounds in 5.4 minutes.

Another veteran option could be Portland's Chris Dudley, who has said he is going to retire, or Chicago's Charles Oakley.