the Hart Trophy, but two of the contenders are the leagues bigges

OAKLAND, Calif. -- The Golden State Warriors are taking another chance on a television analyst and former NBA guard who has never been a head coach at any level. The Warriors won the bidding war with the New York Knicks for Steve Kerr on Wednesday, hiring him away from the TNT broadcast table to be their coach. Kerr agreed to a five-year, $25 million deal with Golden State, said his agent, Mike Tannenbaum. The Warriors confirmed the agreement Wednesday night and said they will introduce Kerr at a news conference after the contract is complete. Kerr had been in talks with the Knicks about becoming their coach since Phil Jackson took over as team president in March. He won three titles playing for Jackson in Chicago and another two under Gregg Popovich in San Antonio. Kerr told NBA.com, which first reported the agreement, that going to Golden State "just felt like the right move on many levels." He said his daughter plays volleyball nearby at the University of California, Berkeley, his oldest son is in college in San Diego and his youngest son is a junior in high school. Kerr called the offer to coach the Knicks a "tantalizing" opportunity. He said it was "agonizing" to say no to Jackson "because of what I think of him and what hes done for my career." "I told Phil, I think I have to pursue this other opportunity," Kerr told the website. "He gave me his blessing. He said. Go look at it, and do what was in my heart." Kerr, 48, said last month that he has wanted to coach since stepping down after three seasons as general manager of the Phoenix Suns in June 2010. And while the lure of rebuilding a flagship franchise with his mentor at Madison Square Garden looked appealing, the chance to coach a Western Conference contender in his home state proved to be too much. Kerr replaces Mark Jackson, who was fired by the Warriors on May 6 after three seasons and back-to-back playoff appearances -- mostly due to a sour relationship between him and team management. The Warriors job is certainly a far more attractive one than when owner Joe Lacob hired Jackson away from the ESPN/ABC broadcast table in June 2011. The Warriors are coming off a 51-win season and consecutive playoff appearances for the first time in 20 years, and theyve surrounded star Stephen Curry with a talented young core. Kerr became the hottest coaching candidate on the market after Phil Jackson started courting him to the Knicks. Kerr also has close ties to Lacob, his son, assistant GM Kirk Lacob, and Warriors President Rick Welts, who worked in Phoenixs front office during Kerrs time as Suns general manager. Given the tension that built between Jackson and Warriors management last season -- and the back-and-forth that played out between them in the media after Jackson was dismissed -- having an established relationship with Kerr was a big reason Lacob wanted him as coach. Lacob lauded Kerr as a candidate last week and defended the decision to change coaches -- which has been debated at great lengths in the basketball-united Bay Area. He compared the decision to how he built his fortune as a venture capitalist in Silicon Valley. Lacob said theres a different person to lead a business at different stages of development, and the Warriors have gone from a "startup" company to an organization looking to maximize its output. "Or in this case win an NBA championship," he said. "And we just felt overall we needed a different person to go forward and get to the next level." And while Kerr has no coaching experience, he played 15 seasons and -- also similar to Mark Jackson -- has been around some of the most successful sideline leaders. Kerr has credited Phil Jackson and Tex Winter for most of his basketball knowledge. Winter taught the triangle offence -- which Kerr would not commit to running with the Warriors -- and was a longtime assistant for Jackson, who used the system to win an NBA-record 11 championships as a coach of the Bulls and Lakers. Golden State also spoke with former Orlando Magic and Miami Heat coach Stan Van Gundy during its search. Van Gundy agreed to a $35 million, five-year deal with Detroit on Tuesday after the Pistons also gave him control of basketball operations -- something the Warriors wouldnt do with general manager Bob Myers and Kirk Lacob in place. The Warriors met with Kerr again on Tuesday night in Oklahoma City, where Kerr was calling the Thunder-Clippers game. And they apparently made a big enough impression -- and contract offer -- to land the man they wanted all along. Atlanta Falcons Chris Lindstrom Jersey .A caravan greeted the former Boston Red Sox pitcher at the airport and took him to a public park in Santo Domingo, where a crowd lined a 19-mile stretch of highway to catch a glimpse of him.Once at the park, Martinez went on stage accompanied by players David Ortiz and Robinson Cano as merengue music played and fireworks lit up the sky. Atlanta Falcons Kaleb McGary Jersey . Some members of the U.S. Congress arent so sure. They say Russia isnt doing enough to assure that athletes will be protected at the Feb. 7-23 games, happening not far from an Islamic insurgency that Russias huge security apparatus has struggled for two decades to quell. Russia may run greater risks in towns outside the tightly controlled Olympic zone. Suicide bombs last month a few hundred kilometres (miles) away have increased concerns, and an Islamic warlord has urged his followers to attack the Sochi Olympics, Russian President Vladimir Putins pet project. http://www.cheapfalcons.com/ . -- Canadian freestyle skier Roz Groenewoud isnt letting surgery to both of her knees deter her expectations for the Sochi Olympics. Atlanta Falcons Kendall Sheffield Jersey . After a 99-97 loss to the Toronto Raptors on Wednesday night, his Celtics coaches and teammates have only positive things to say about the Toronto-born rookie. Atlanta Falcons Jerseys China . There are some early surprises in the race for the Hart Trophy, but two of the contenders are the leagues biggest stars over the past decade. There are many more players in contention for the awards than just the three that Ive named, and a good or bad week can easily alter the landscape, but through the first 20 or so games of the NHL season, this is how the awards races look to me.WASHINGTON -- A month ago Drew Goodens home court was at an LA Fitness facility a few miles outside of Washington, D.C. Now hes squarely in the U.S. capital and helping the Washington Wizards playoff drive. John Wall scored 33 points, Gooden got 11 of his 21 in the final quarter and the Wizards overcame a 10-point fourth-quarter deficit for a 101-94 win over the Brooklyn Nets on Saturday night. "You guys joke about me being old, but Im still Drew Gooden," the 32-year-old said. "And thats what I do. Once I see a couple going in I feel like I cant miss. Tonight the ball was definitely on my side and it dropped for me tonight." Goodens 3-pointer broke a 94-94 tie with 2:37 left. Trevor Ariza then scored off an offensive rebound with 44 seconds left and Wall capped it with dunk. Washington completed a sweep of the season series (3-0) and moved ahead of Brooklyn for fifth place in the Eastern Conference. The game between two teams that could meet in the post-season had a playoff atmosphere in front of the Wizards third sellout of the season. "The longer we go here, the more games are going to feel like that. I thought the fans in the building were electric, all night," Wizards coach Randy Wittman said. "Our guys played off of that and it was an intense game, there is no question about that." Wittman said Gooden -- who added nine rebounds -- Harrington, and Andre Miller provided a lift off the bench. "A couple times early in the first half, (the game) was tinkering on a break point," Wittman said. "I thought our guys, Drew, Andre and Al, changed the tone of the game when they went in. Their physicality bled under the other guys." With starting centre/forward Nene sidelined (sprained left knee), the Wizards signed Gooden -- now in his 11th NBA season -- to a 10-day contract on Feb. 26 and another on March 8. Soon theyll have to decide whether or not to keep him for the remainder of the season. "Obviously Drew came out, and those are things he can do, he can make shots," Wittman said. Washingtons Bradley Beal, who sprained an ankle in Friday nights overtime win at Orlando, started annd added 15 points.dddddddddddd The Nets, who went the final 6:22 without a field goal, were led by Marcus Thorntons 19 points. Joe Johnson added 16 and Paul Pierce had 15. "We got great looks, it just didnt go down," Nets coach Jason Kidd said. "We executed plays, I think we might have gotten a little frustrated on the defensive end, when we were giving up shots, and that led to the carry-over on the offensive end." Thornton opened the fourth quarter with a 3-pointer that gave Brooklyn an 82-72 lead. "Thats a chance when you could put a team on its back, when you go up double figures. ..." Pierce said. "But we never could give them that big hit. And they kept grinding, kept grinding, and got back in the game." The Wizards went on a 15-4 run keyed by Gooden (8 of 11 from the field) and Harrington. Harrington started things off when he scored four points and picked up a steal that led to a basket by Beal. Then with the Wizards trailing by three, Gooden hit a layup and then a jumper from the wing that gave Washington an 87-86 lead, its first of the half. "I thought in the fourth quarter we got down and defended," Wittman said. "We didnt take any shortcuts." Thornton answered for New Jersey, making a 3 and following with a driving bank shot to put Brooklyn up 91-87 midway through the quarter. The Wizards tied it at 92 on Walls free throw. Wall nearly brought the Wizards all the way back in the third, when he scored 15 points. The Wizards cut a 12-point deficit to 63-62 before Brooklyn went on an 8-0 run. The Wizards, playing on back-to-back nights, trailed by seven after one and pulled to within 33-32 on Martell Websters 3-pointer early in the second quarter. NOTES: The Wizards improved to 17-16 at home. ... Washington last swept the Nets in 2009-10, when they took all four meetings. ... Brooklyn F Andrei Kirilenko returned after missing two games with a sprained ankle. ... Nets C Jason Collins, who signed a contract for the remainder of the season Saturday, didnt see action. ... Pierce (24,819) passed Patrick Ewing for 18th place on the NBAs career points list. 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