BOWIE -- First there was the tendinitis in both of his knees. Then there was the broken right thumb. The injuries cost Don MacLean the past 39 games, but after his first practice yesterday, it is clear that the long layoff has not shaken his confidence.
"It feels good, better than it has since December," MacLean said. "I can do pretty much everything."
The test of whether MacLean can do pretty much everything in a setting other than practice could take place tonight, when the Washington Bullets play host to the Philadelphia 76ers. The Bullets likely will hold out until just before game time to determine MacLean's status.
"I thought [MacLean] was pretty good, and there's a good chance," coach Jim Lynam said about whether MacLean will play. "He shot a lot last week and it felt good, and the next day it was the sorest it's ever been."
If there's no soreness today, MacLean will be activated. But instead of the Bullets' getting back to their healthiest state since early in the season, they may have guard Rex Chapman back on the injured list. Chapman broke his right thumb on Feb. 3 and was activated last week. But he has sat out the past two games.
"I'm not going to play him until that thing's off," Lynam said of the covering around Chapman's thumb. "And we're talking a week to 10 days."
MacLean doesn't plan on such setbacks. He hopes to pick up right where he left off last season, when he averaged 18.2 points and was named the league's Most Improved Player. He was accurate with his jumper in yesterday's practice and did not appear tentative driving to the basket.
"I made a bunch of jump shots, and I was pleased the way I took it to the hole," MacLean said. "I feel I can contribute and play as much as I want to, but I can't come in and command minutes."
This was not the way MacLean thought his season would turn out. He turned down a two-year, $12 million extension to the contract that pays him $740,000 this season -- a risky move that appeared to backfire when the tendinitis in his knees worsened in December and when he broke the finger in a New Year's Eve scuffle.
"I've been thinking about that a lot, and I'm not sorry I didn't take the money," MacLean said. "Now it's a challenge, to try to prove to everybody I can play and then end up getting a better contract than the $12 million that was offered me."
MacLean may not see the same scoring opportunities and minutes now that Chris Webber and Juwan Howard are with the team. Their addition could make MacLean expendable at season's end, when he becomes a restricted free agent.
"If I'm not in their plans," MacLean said, "I'm sure someone else will want my services."
BULLETS TONIGHT
Opponent: Philadelphia 76ers
Site: USAir Arena, Landover
Time: 7:30
TV/Radio: HTS/WWLG (1360 AM), WTEM (570 AM)
Outlook: Philadelphia has lost four straight, with Sunday's 104-99 loss to the New York Knicks. F Clarence Weatherspoon (sprained right ankle) and rookie G B. J. Tyler (strained stomach muscle) were activated on Sunday. G Dana Barros (20.1 ppg) and Weatherspoon (18.2) lead the Sixers in scoring. The Sixers, who have gone with an up-tempo offense recently, have won two of three games against the Bullets this season. Washington, which ended a six-game losing streak against Sacramento on Friday, hopes to win back-to-back games for the first time since beating Philadelphia and New Jersey on Jan. 20 and Jan. 22.