Richard Hamilton has not been able to shake a groin injury that sidelined him eight games about a month ago. Hamilton re-aggravated the injury last week and did not practice Thursday. He's still hoping to play against Boston Friday and Cleveland Sunday.
There's no hard evidence on this, but maybe being the sixth man had something to do with it. Before he accepted the role, Hamilton spoke of how he needed to keep warm. He's not used to sitting on the bench for the first eight or nine minutes, then try to make an immediate contribution. He no longer has the ability to ease into games and perhaps that idleness, followed by the quick bursts he makes, put too much strain on that area.
Another note: Will Bynum is out of the rotation for about the fifth time this season. Allen Iverson has played well enough at the point in stretches to be the backup to Rodney Stuckey. AI and Rip have to be able to co-exist on the court and it seems when they play together without Stuckey, instead of in a three-guard set, they're more comfortable.