WASHINGTON, April 14 (AP) -- Indiana Pacers center Jeff Foster missed Monday night's must-win game against the Washington Wizards, who played without Gilbert Arenas and Caron Butler.

Foster bruised his right knee in Saturday's 107-103 loss to Charlotte. Pacers coach Jim O'Brien said he expects Foster to be available for Wednesday's regular season finale against New York.

Butler missed his second consecutive game with a sore knee, while Arenas had a precautionary day off. Arenas has been playing limited minutes as a reserve since returning from knee surgery.

Indiana's Jermaine O'Neal has also been playing off the bench since returning from a knee injury, leading to some interesting pregame comparisons by the two coaches.

"We both have a pretty good player coming off the bench,'' O'Brien said. "If they did it permanently, they'd probably compete for sixth man of the year.''

But Washington's Eddie Jordan took a dig at O'Neal when he showed a clear preference for Arenas.

"It's the same sort of thing, but I like to have that speed and quickness -- rather than that slow, plodding, post-up guy,'' Jordan said.

Jordan paused, then quickly added: "But he's a great player.''