Newsmakers
Entered Kentucky forward Nerlens Noel will enter the NBA draft as he continues recovering from a torn ACL. The 6-foot-10 freshman is projected to be a lottery pick despite sustaining a season-ending knee injury on Feb. 12. He led the nation with 4.4 blocks per game, and averaged 10.5 points and 9.5 rebounds.
• Maryland sophomore center Alex Len has decided to enter the NBA draft. The 7-foot-1 player from Ukraine averaged 11.9 points and 7.8 rebounds in 2012-13. He led the Atlantic Coast Conference with 78 blocked shots.
• Georgia sophomore guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope will enter the NBA draft. Caldwell- Pope decided to turn pro after finishing second in the SEC in scoring at 18.5 points a game. He also swept player-of-the-year awards handed out by the AP and league coaches.
Fired The Edmonton Oilers have fired general manager Steve Tambellini and replaced him with former Edmonton coach Craig MacTavish. Edmonton is on the verge of missing the NHL playoffs for a seventh consecutive season. Also, the Oilers hired former Oilers assistant GM Scott Howson, who was recently fired as GM of the Columbus Blue Jackets, to be the team’s senior vice president of hockey operations.
Signed San Francisco 49ers cornerback Tramaine Brock has signed his one-year tender. Brock had 16 tackles and a forced fumble last season for the 49ers. He also shared the team lead with 15 tackles on special teams.
• The Cleveland Browns have signed free agent kicker Shayne Graham. A 12-year NFL veteran, Graham has made 85.4 percent of his kicks, fifth in league history. Graham played in 16 games for Houston last season, setting a team record for points with 138.
Out Denver Nuggets forward Kenneth Faried won’t suit up again until sometime during the playoffs after an MRI revealed no fractures in his sprained left ankle. Faried is averaging 11.5 points and a team-best 9.2 rebounds.
Discussed A person familiar with the situation tells the Associated Press that the Philadelphia 76ers and Doug Collins are trying to resolve their relationship after the coach told them he would not return for a fourth season. The person said both sides spent the day working toward an agreement that would keep Collins in the organization in some capacity or free him from the club.
Ranked South Korea’s Inbee Park took over the top spot in the LPGA rankings, ending Stacy Lewis’ four-week run at No. 1. Lewis dropped to second, an average of 0.04 points per event behind Park in the two-year standings. Taiwan’s Yani Tseng remained No. 3.