Briefly

NBA commissioner David Stern submitted an affidavit Thursday supporting the efforts by the majority of the Atlanta Hawks owners to remove Steve Belkin as the team’s NBA governor.

The majority of the Atlanta Spirit LLC group has requested that Belkin be replaced with Michael Gearon Jr., as NBA governor, the member of the group who must sign off on all trades.

The effort to remove Belkin, who owns 30 percent of the team, followed his refusal to approve the team’s attempted sign-and-trade for guard Joe Johnson of the Phoenix Suns.

The owners sought assistance from Stern after Boston judge Allan van Gestel granted Belkin’s request for a temporary injunction Tuesday. The judge said a contract signed by all the owners last year prevents other members of the ownership group from voting Belkin out.

The judge instructed the majority of the owners to seek a ruling from Stern, saying that a precondition of any removal was the approval of the commissioner.

•Jon Barry re-signed with the Rockets after joining the team in December from Atlanta and providing Houston with strong 3-point shooting.

•The Orlando Magic waived guard Doug Christie after a disappointing season marred by injury and public squabble with team management.

•Jeff McInnis signed a two-year deal with the New Jersey Nets to back up Jason Kidd.

Gymnastics

Memmel in prelim lead

A foot injury kept Chellsie Memmel out of last year’s Olympics. Now that she’s healthy again, she’s looking more like the girl who hauled in all that gold in 2003.

The double gold medalist at the 2003 world championships outperformed pre-meet favorite Nastia Liukin, finishing first in Thursday night’s preliminaries at the U.S. Gymnastics Championships at Indianapolis. Memmel scored 38.382 points, putting her almost a point ahead of Liukin. Liukin, who was hurt by a major slip on the balance beam, is third with 37.515 points.

Jana Bieger, third behind Liukin in last year’s junior division, is second with 37.615 points.

The finals, worth 50 percent of the score, are Saturday night.

Boxing

Etienne arrested

Baton Rouge, La., police said heavyweight boxer Clifford Etienne held up a check cashing business, fired a shot when a clerk failed to move fast enough and pulled a gun on officers as he tried to carjack two different vehicles with children inside.

Etienne, who took up boxing while serving a prison sentence for armed robbery, was arrested Wednesday night as he tried to escape when the car he was driving ran up on a curb. He was being held in lieu of a $70,000 bond, according to the East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s Office.

He is best known for being knocked out by Mike Tyson in 49 seconds in 2003.

College football

Pac-10 makes deals

The Pac-10 Conference has extended its commitment to play in the Las Vegas Bowl through 2009, officials announced.

The agreement will have the fourth-place Pac-10 finisher play in 2006 and 2008, while the Emerald Bowl in San Francisco gets the Pac-10 fifth-place finisher. In 2007 and 2009, the two bowls will reverse the order.

Hockey

Lindros to Toronto

Eric Lindros signed a one-year, $1.55 million contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Lindros has played 678 NHL games for Philadelphia and the Rangers, recording 356 goals, 461 assists and 1,285 penalty minutes.

•Roberto Luongo is being taken to arbitration by the Florida Panthers, a move that ensures the record-setting goaltender will be under contract when the team opens camp next month.

The Panthers exercised a new right that enables teams to take players to arbitration. A hearing could take place as early as Aug. 22.

•The Boston Bruins re-signed star center Joe Thornton to a new three-year contract.

Thornton, a restricted free agent, will get $6.66 million for each of the three years.

Miscellany

Sorenson gets Cup ride

Reed Sorenson, a hotshot 19-year-old Busch Series driver, will run a full Nextel Cup schedule next season in a fourth team for Chip Ganassi Racing, two people within the team told the Associated Press.

•Justin and Troy Dumais won the 3-meter synchro gold medal at the U.S. National Diving Championships at Huntersville, N.C.

The brothers, who won the bronze at last month’s world championships, finished with 337.710 points.