Thursday’s Sports in Brief – The News Tribune

PRO BASKETBALL

NEW YORK (AP) — Markelle Fultz and Lonzo Ball led a record-setting run of one-and-dones in the NBA draft.

The Philadelphia 76ers took Fultz with the No. 1 pick and the Lakers followed by taking Ball, with the point guards from the Pac-12 Conference beginning a run of seven straight freshmen. Nine of the first 10 selections played just one season of college ball.

The 76ers had the No. 1 pick for the second straight year after trading with the Boston Celtics on Monday. Now they add Fultz to a promising young core that includes Rookie of the Year finalists Joel Embiid and Dario Saric, plus Ben Simmons, the top pick from last year who sat out all season with a foot injury.

The Celtics took Duke’s Jayson Tatum at No. 3 after moving down two spots in the trade with Philadelphia, drawing cheers from a large contingent of their fans at Barclays Center wearing green. The Suns took Josh Jackson of Kansas, the Sacramento Kings took Kentucky guard De’Aaron Fox at No. 5 and the run of freshmen continued when the Orlando Magic selected Jonathan Isaac.

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Ever since Tom Thibodeau took over in Minnesota last summer, a reunion with Chicago Bulls All-Star Jimmy Butler seemed destined to happen.

For the coach that desperately wanted a defensive-minded veteran to set the tone for a talented young roster, and for the player who only truly realized what he had in that hard-driving leader after he was gone.

In the blockbuster move of draft night, the Bulls traded Butler and the 16th overall pick to the Timberwolves for Zach LaVine, Kris Dunn and the No. 7 overall pick as the Wolves try to finally put an end to a 13-year playoff drought.

The trade brings together Butler and Wolves coach and president Thibodeau, who coached the Bulls for five seasons before being fired in 2015. Thibodeau helped Butler become an All-NBA performer and earn a $95 million contract and Butler helped Thibodeau instill the brass-knuckle mentality into those Bulls teams.

The Wolves paid a big price: Besides surrendering the lottery pick, they gave up a rising star in LaVine, who is coming off of a torn ACL, and Dunn, last year’s No. 5 overall pick. They were among the youngest teams in the league last season, cast as a team that could be a force once all of their pups grew up.

HOCKEY

GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Dave Tippett stuck with the Arizona Coyotes through four seasons of playing without an owner, five years of losing since the franchise’s greatest success in the desert and the start of a rebuilding process.

The latest changes have the affable coach headed out after leading the franchise through eight up-and-down seasons.

Tippett and the Coyotes mutually agreed to part ways, a move that comes as owner Andrew Barroway revamps the franchise.

Tippett coached the Coyotes through four years of being run by the NHL after the team went into bankruptcy, making the best with a team hampered by financial limitations. The Coyotes hit a high by reaching the 2012 Western Conference Finals, but have fallen on hard times since, missing the playoffs five straight seasons.

PRO FOOTBALL

ALAMEDA, Calif. (AP) — Raiders quarterback Derek Carr finalized a five-year contract extension that will keep him with the team through the 2022 season.

Carr tweeted that an agreement had been reached to add five years to his current rookie deal that expires after this season. The contract will be worth $125 million, according to a person familiar with the deal who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because terms were not released. NFL Network first reported the terms of the contract.

The Raiders are counting on Carr to be the face of the franchise when it moves to Las Vegas for the 2020 season and are paying him that way. The $25 million per year in new money is the richest contract ever in the NFL, beating out the $24.8 million a year Andrew Luck got from Indianapolis.

VANDERBILT RAPE CASE

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A jury will continue deliberations Friday morning in the trial of a third former Vanderbilt University football player charged in the 2013 rape of an unconscious female student.

Jurors spent more than five hours trying to reach a verdict in Brandon Banks’ case Thursday.

Prosecutors have leaned on graphic photos and videos of the assault, some shot by Banks and others by his teammates.

Banks has contended that if he didn’t join in, he would face a beating — if not right away, then at practice or some other time.

TRUMP AMBASSADORS

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump says he’ll nominate New York Jets owner Woody Johnson to be the U.S. ambassador to the United Kingdom.

Johnson raised money for Trump’s presidential campaign and donated funds to help pay for inaugural festivities. Johnson is chairman and CEO of The Johnson Co., a private asset management firm in New York. He has owned the National Football League team since 2000. Johnson’s nomination was expected after Trump made a public reference to it in January.

Trump also announced his choice of Jamie McCourt, an attorney and former co-owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers baseball team, to be the U.S. ambassador to Belgium.

The Senate must confirm the nominations.

BASEBALL

MIAMI (AP) — Derek Jeter told Major League Baseball he doesn’t yet have the necessary money to buy the Miami Marlins and is still seeking help from other investors, a person familiar with the negotiations said.

The person described the status of the Marlins’ sale talks to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the team isn’t discussing the negotiations publicly.

The person said Jeter, a 14-time All-Star shortstop, met with MLB and Marlins officials in New York and provided an update on his efforts to raise the needed money. The person said multiple other groups remain in the mix to purchase the team.