The rest of the team will scatter to various locations, absorbing all things not basketball.
Except, of course, that one request from Collins: Believe in what's ahead.
On Wednesday night, the Sixers trailed early but never again, building a nine-point lead in the third quarter and a 13-point lead in the fourth. After absorbing the Rockets' best run in the game's first five minutes, a stretch that included eight of Houston guard and former Villanova standout Kyle Lowry's 36 points, the Sixers drove and dished their way to victory.
The Sixers improved to 27-29. The Rockets dropped to 26-31.
"It's a great way to end this out," Collins said. "And I think you saw it. Our guys started out very slowly, but they weren't going to lose. They just weren't going to lose."
Leaving Houston with a loss wouldn't have been representative of this season's first half. After one month of bad basketball and three months of good, the Sixers couldn't go into the all-star break on a two-game losing streak.
So they didn't.
"We don't like losing, and we do a good job of regrouping and seeing what we did wrong on the first night," Iguodala said of the team's strong play one night after losing big to the Memphis Grizzlies.
Iguodala's all-around game was essentially a microcosm of the team's production. He finished with a triple-double: 13 points, 12 rebounds, and 10 assists.
Reserves Lou Williams, Evan Turner, and Thaddeus Young combined for 48 points and 11 rebounds, with Williams dragging the offense behind him whenever it stalled. Power forward Elton Brand and center Spencer Hawes combined for 27 points and 21 rebounds. Holiday recovered from Lowry's early-game toasting and finished with 20 points and eight assists.
The Sixers shot 55.2 percent from the floor.
