Silva: Each NFL team enters the offseason with a series of pressing needs. Sometimes a team can address them all, sometimes they ignore them all. But if a team's smart, they'll listen to us. These are the most crucial aspects for NFC teams.
SportsTalk: Albert Pujols signs with the Angels and Prince Fielder joins the Tigers. Which team is better now?
Ryan Callahan scored for the fifth time in four days and defenseman Ryan McDonagh snapped a second-period tie to lift the New York Rangers to a 3-2 victory over the Washington Capitals on Sunday.
Kobe Bryant hit a baseline jump shot with 4.2 seconds left and the Los Angeles Lakers wrapped up a six-game road trip by holding on to beat the Raptors 94-92 on Sunday, their eighth victory in nine meetings with Toronto
Arc's five up, five down: After No. 11 Michigan State's 58-48 upset of No. 3 Ohio State, you'd be a fool to discount the Spartans' national title chances now.
Miami coach Al Golden says the worst is behind him, but his headaches figure to continue now that former booster Nevin Shapiro, now in jail, says his involvement with the Hurricanes program will result in stiff penalties.
Golf's dream pairing - Woods and Mickelson - is on the course in the final round at Pebble Beach. Jason Sobel has hole-by-hole reports.
The United States completed a 5-0 rout of Switzerland in the Davis Cup on Sunday, with 19-year-old Ryan Harrison and John Isner winning closing singles matches.
Zambia has won the African Cup of Nations, beating pre-tournament favorite Ivory Coast 8-7 on penalties in a dramatic final at Stade de l'Amitie.
Tessa Worley of France fought off gusting winds to win a second consecutive World Cup giant slalom Sunday in the Andorran Pyrenees. Overall leader Lindsey Vonn was more than a second behind and finished eighth.
Robins: It’s the Year of the Dragon on the Lunar calendar, and this Chinese influence could extend to it also being the year of the Pekingese on the green carpet at the 136th Westminster Dog Show on Tuesday.
APA group of five "homegrown" Oklahoma businessmen who made their fortunes in banking, energy and telecommunications had worked over the years to bring a major sports franchise to their hometown. When they finally landed a team, it was an NBA franchise 2,000 miles away.
The Oklahoma-based investors say they intend to keep the Sonics and Storm in Seattle, but their deep ties to the civic and business life of Oklahoma City -- and the city's hunger for a major franchise -- suggest otherwise.
Clay Bennett, former part-owner of the San Antonio Spurs and chairman of a private investment company, heads Professional Basketball Club LLC, the new ownership group whose roster reads like a who's who of the Oklahoma City business elite.
"They're all homegrown Oklahoma City businessmen," said Mayor Mick Cornett, who added that his "head was still spinning" with the news. "They're among our largest civic leaders."
Bennett, 46, was instrumental in helping to lure the New Orleans Hornets to Oklahoma City last season when the basketball franchise was searching for a place to play following the devastation of Hurricane Katrina. The Hornets will play 35 games there in the 2006-2007 season.
The success of the Hornets at the 19,599-seat Ford Center with sellout crowds and average attendance that ranked in the NBA's top 10 raised hopes that the Sonics could end up there.
"People are starting to connect the dots," Cornett said, as rumors swirled before the announcement Tuesday afternoon. But he later said it's presumptuous to assume that the Sonics were coming to Oklahoma City.
"This city loves the NBA and we could support the NBA," said Roy Williams, president and CEO of the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce. "We're now an NBA city. Whether or not the Sonics end up here, no one can really answer that question yet."
For now, the city remains pro Hornets, he said.
"We've all bought tickets to the game, engaged in the draft process," Williams said. "We know all the players. Until someone tells us differently, that's where our allegiance is."
Bennett repeatedly insisted Tuesday that the owners will make every effort to negotiate a deal that would allow them to stay in Seattle.
"Clay Bennett is a guy who can get things done," Cornett said.
"He's so highly respected and so well-connected and he's so savvy. And you combine all of that, and you've got a person who can really have an impact."
Bennett, chairman of the investment firm Dorchester Capital, was the lead negotiator in trying to figure out how to make the Hornets deal happen, Williams said.
He came up with the idea of "pioneer partners" -- rallying support from major corporations to cover up to a $10 million revenue gap if the Hornets didn't make enough money while playing in Oklahoma City last season. The Hornets did, and the investors didn't have to cover the gap, Williams said.
Kobe Bryant hit a baseline jump shot with 4.2 seconds left and the Los Angeles Lakers wrapped up a six-game road trip by holding on to beat the Raptors 94-92 on Sunday, their eighth victory in nine meetings with Toronto
Rajon Rondo recorded a triple-double with 32 points, 15 assists and 10 rebounds to lead the Boston Celtics to a 95-91 win Sunday over the Chicago Bulls, who were without star guard Derrick Rose.
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Wesseling: Each NFL team enters the offseason with a series of pressing needs. Sometimes a team can address them all, sometimes they ignore them all. But if a team's smart, they'll listen to us. These are the most crucial aspects for AFC teams.
After leading by 18 points in the first half, the Los Angeles Lakers were staring at a four-point deficit with less than two minutes to play.
Ryan Callahan scored for the fifth time in four days and defenseman Ryan McDonagh snapped a second-period tie to lift the New York Rangers to a 3-2 victory over the Washington Capitals on Sunday.