With Philadelphia in a now unfamiliar position of preparing for a post season which includes golf rather than playoff basketball, the Sixers held their annual season-ending team meeting at Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine.

This year there was no Allen Iverson - Larry Brown blowup, with Brown preparing his Pistons for a run through the East while Iverson made it 25 straight days where he was unavailable to the Sixer beat reporters.

Amid all that, there was other news. King said that interim coach Chris Ford would be given consideration for the full-time job, but that he had yet to meet with Ford on that subject. King also said 13 of the 15 players on the roster attended yesterday's meeting; Marc Jackson was excused, Derrick Coleman was not. Of Coleman's absence, King said, "It will be dealt with."

Heading into the offseason the team's coaching situation is by far their most pressing need.  Randy Ayers was hired to replace Larry Brown before the season then didn't even make it through his first 82 games, Ford taking over and leading the team to a 12-17 record - mostly without Iverson, and minus the playoffs.

"It's started - the process has started," King said. "Hopefully, it won't take that long. Chris is a guy that I will consider for the job. I think he did a great job; he got our guys to play hard."

Ford, who previously coached the Boston Celtics, Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Clippers, had been out of the league for three seasons when he joined Ayers' staff at the start of this season. He has said he would like to remain with the organization, and he has indicated he has the option of doing that next season in some capacity. He has not said outright that he wants to remain the head coach.

"I'll meet with Billy sometime and see where I'm going to be," Ford said. "I have no idea. I'll wait until I talk to Billy."

Later, Ford said: "I don't think Randy or myself really had the team that they thought they were going to have. Unfortunately, it just never presented itself on the court. It's tough to evaluate what could have been if they were all available and healthy. But that's professional sports."

Iverson clashed several times with Ford, but King said, "My intention is, Allen will be on the roster."

King said Iverson, who is completing his eighth season with the team, told him yesterday: "Billy, I can play for anybody. I want to win."

"He said he wants to be a part of this, that he's been here when it was bad, good, and now [when] we're not in the playoffs," King said. "He loves it here. He doesn't see himself ever playing for another team."

Asked whether, despite his intentions not to trade his star, he would listen to offers, King responded, "Please don't read into what I said."