Orlando Star Out For Year
Penny Hardaway, the Orlando Magic’s All-Star guard, said Thursday he will be out for the remainder of the season because of a strained calf tendon.
Hardaway, who has appeared in only 19 games and last played for the Magic on Feb. 13, has visited several doctors in an attempt to find a cure for the pain in his left calf, but with no success.
“I thought it would get better by now, but it hasn’t,” Hardaway said. “Right now, I’m going to sit out the rest of the season.”
The Magic placed Hardaway on the injured list, meaning he would be eligible for activation after five games, but general manager John Gabriel didn’t sound optimistic.
“Is there an outside chance Penny could return, something to hold out hope for? I guess that’s possible,” Gabriel said. “But we’ve talked to the doctors and looked at the history of the injury and it doesn’t make sense to try and project a date when he’ll be healthy enough to play.”
Sprewell faces charges
Authorities recommend criminal charges for suspended basketball star Latrell Sprewell, who is accused of injuring two people after driving 90 mph and slamming his car into another vehicle.
California Highway Patrol investigators will advise prosecutors to file a misdemeanor charge of reckless driving against the Golden State Warriors guard, CHP spokesman Cliff Kroeger said Thursday.
Sprewell is accused of driving at high speeds while trying to jump back onto the freeway from an exit-only lane near Pleasant Hill on March 1.
He struck sand barrels and slammed his 1997 Mercedes into a Toyota Corolla, which flipped when both cars crashed into a concrete wall, Kroeger said.
Sprewell was unhurt, but the two people in the other vehicle - Arnulfo Perlas, 54, and Irma Feliciano, 53 - sustained minor injuries, he said. They were treated at a hospital and released.
Stockton 3 shy of milestone
The Associated Press, based on incorrect information supplied by the Utah Jazz, erroneously reported Wednesday that John Stockton had surpassed 15,000 career points in a game with the Sacramento Kings. His 16 points in the game gave him 14,997.
Askins has surgery
Miami Heat guard-forward Keith Askins is likely to miss the next six weeks after undergoing arthroscopic surgery to repair torn cartilage in his knee.
Mavs surprise Bulls
The team that Charles Barkley said couldn’t win the NCAAs beat the world champions Thursday night.
The Dallas Mavericks erased a 19-point fourth-quarter deficit against the visiting Chicago Bulls and treated the largest crowd in the history of their building, 18,255, to a 104-97 overtime victory.
Chicago led 85-68 with 5:43 left in regulation, but the Bulls didn’t score a field goal over the final 3:44.
In other action
David Robinson had his nose bloodied in the first quarter but returned to score 29 points, leading the San Antonio Spurs to a 97-86 victory over the Sacramento Kings in San Antonio.
The Spurs, who won their third straight, clinched a playoff spot.
Shaquille O’Neal scored 32 points and Eddie Jones added 23 as the Los Angeles Lakers routed the Los Angeles Clippers 108-85 in Anaheim.
Derek Fisher tied a career-high with 21 points and grabbed a career-high 11 rebounds in place of injured point guard Nick Van Exel.
Anthony Goldwire hit two 3-pointers in the final minute and the Denver Nuggets withstood two furious Vancouver rallies to post a rare victory, 98-93 in Denver, snapping a 16-game losing streak.
Clyde Drexler scored 33 points, including five in the tight final minute, as the Houston Rockets extended the New Jersey Nets’ losing streak to seven games with a 115-104 victory in Houston.