The Philadelphia 76ers just might be a better team without Allen Iverson.

In their last eight games minus the injured Iverson, the Sixers are 7-1 and have moved back into the playoff race in the Eastern Conference. The All-Star guard is sidelined because of a sore right knee, an injury that might not have kept him out of the lineup in past years.

The Sixers (31-42) beat Dallas, Phoenix and Cleveland this week after losing their previous three games with Iverson. His status for the remaining nine games is uncertain.

“I think that they are just getting after it,” interim coach Chris Ford said after Friday night’s 86-71 victory over the Cavaliers. “They enjoy playing with one another right now. They’re just working hard. Whoever we have left standing is out there working hard.”

The Sixers had won four straight games before Iverson clashed again with Ford, who took over on an interim basis after Randy Ayers was fired Feb. 9. Iverson refused to play in a loss to Detroit on March 14 after being told by Ford he would come off the bench because he had missed the previous three games because of an injury.

Iverson’s first confrontation with Ford came when he was fined for missing practice one day after playing in the All-Star game.

After sitting on the bench in street clothes in Detroit, Iverson returned the next game and the Sixers lost the three games he played, before he went out again. One year after playing all 82 regular-season games for the first time in his career, Iverson has missed a career-high 25 games to various injuries.

“Why is it just without Allen? We have four guys out,” point guard Eric Snow said. “You’re going to talk about who’s out, talk about everybody. It’s a team game. That’s why we have 12, 13 guys.”

Iverson is joined on the sideline by forward Glenn Robinson (elbow) and centers Marc Jackson (foot) and Derrick Coleman (knee). Still, the Sixers are within 11/2 games of the Celtics for the final playoff spot. They play at Boston tonight. The Sixers, who went to the NBA Finals in 2001 and have made the playoffs the last five years, are 9-2 without Iverson and Robinson, their two top scorers.

“The movement of the ball has been fun to watch from the sidelines and just the ball movement and the open shots we’re getting and the unselfishness, it’s contagious out there,” Ford said.

The Sixers are playing a more team-oriented style without Iverson, who has often been criticized throughout his career for taking too many shots and playing selfishly.