Associated Press
CHARLOTTE ó Raymond Felton signed Charlotte’s one-year, $5.5 million qualifying offer on Wednesday after the restricted free agent was unable to come to teams on a long-term contract.
The move means the Bobcats starting point guard will report on time to training camp next week, then become an unrestricted free agent next summer.
“Raymond didn’t want this to be a distraction to his teammates or to the organization going into training camp. So we just decided it was time,” agent Kevin Bradbury said. “Raymond wanted to move on. He didn’t want this to linger anymore.”
Felton averaged 14.2 points and 6.7 assists last season and won over new coach Larry Brown, who said keeping Felton was a top offseason priority.
Felton also repeatedly said he wanted to stay in Charlotte and sign a long-term deal, but the two sides were never close.
Felton will be under pressure to help Charlotte reach the playoffs for the first time ó and hold off D.J. Augustin for the starting job this season. The Bobcats used the ninth pick in the 2008 draft on Augustin, but Felton kept his job in 2008-09.
The Bobcats report to training camp Monday. The first workout is a day later.
– EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. ó Could the New Jersey Nets become the Nyets?
The basketball team once known as the New Jersey Americans is a step closer to being owned by Russia’s richest man, Mikhail Prokhorov, who on Wednesday said he has a deal to buy 80 percent of the NBA team and nearly half of a project to build a new arena in Brooklyn.
NASCAR
CHARLOTTE ó Lost in the drama of the late-race showdown between Mark Martin and Juan Pablo Montoya was another very strong run for Jimmie Johnson.
With little fanfare, the three-time defending Sprint Cup champion finished fourth at New Hampshire. It was just another day at the office for Johnson, who is vying for a NASCAR record fourth consecutive title this season.
“I’m obviously pleased with the performance from New Hampshire, and very happy to be where we are in the points,” said Johnson, who is tied with Denny Hamlin for second in the Chase for the championship standings. They trail Martin, the leader, by 35 points.
But Johnson won’t stay quiet for long. It’s likely he’ll be front and center this weekend during Round 2 of the Chase at Dover International Speedway.
Johnson has four wins on the 1-mile concrete oval, including a dominating victory in June when he led 298 of 400 laps.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL
LAWRENCE, Kan. ó Tyshawn Taylor, a sophomore guard on the Kansas basketball team, was treated at a hospital Tuesday night after being injured in a scuffle among athletes.
A person close to the situation says Taylor was treated for an injury to his hand that may sideline him for 4-6 weeks.
The first fight broke out about 6:30 p.m. Tuesday outside Burge Union, the building where athletes take their meals. Police reports quoted witnesses as saying football and basketball players had been “baiting each other,” and that “there was a big mob of people outside the building and several people were fighting each other.”
Then, about 10 a.m. Wednesday on another part of campus, things got even uglier. Witnesses reported some players hurling racial insults and a basketball player shoving a football player down a few stairs.
NFL
IRVING, Texas ó Cowboys left tackle Flozell Adams has been fined $12,500 by the NFL for kicking two New York Giants on Sunday, making it two straight games he’s been fined.
Adams was punished not only for the second-quarter play that left Justin Tuck with a shoulder injury, but also for doing it to Osi Umenyiora in the fourth quarter.