The bigger they are, the harder they fall, and the Philadelphia 76ers find themselves with not many big men due to all the post players who have fallen to the injury list.

With four post players out for Friday's 100-98 preseason win over the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Sixers went with Steven Hunter as the starting center and James Thomas at power forward.

Not exactly the lineup coach Maurice Cheeks is planning on using all season, but it was what he had to work with under the circumstances.

Neither center Samuel Dalembert nor forward Chris Webber, the projected starters, have played in any of the Sixers three preseason games, as both have a strain of the right quad muscle.

In addition, 6-foot-10 rookie forward Shavlik Randolph, who has a partially guaranteed contract, has been out with a broken left foot since the first day of training camp and is expected to miss a couple more weeks.

The one bright spot in the blizzard of big-men injuries was the opportunity it gave to 6-10 forward Michael Bradley. A journeyman since leaving Villanova four years ago, Bradley had been playing well and scored seven points in the Sixers' first preseason game against San Antonio.

However on Friday, Bradley had surgery for a torn right meniscus in his knee and is projected to be out for 4-6 weeks.

Sixers general manager Billy King said that since none of the injuries are long-term, he is not actively seeking to add more post players to the roster.