Newsmakers
Responds Soccer player David Beckham said Los Angeles Galaxy teammate Landon Donovan was “unprofessional” for speaking out without confronting him first. Beckham, who was making his first public appearance in Southern California since returning from his five-month loan with Italian club AC Milan, said he had not spoken to Donovan, who called him a bad captain and portrayed him as stingy in an upcoming book “The Beckham Experiment,” written by Grant Wahl.
Retained The Mavericks have re-signed Jason Kidd. The team announced that free-agent point guard signed, five days after owner Mark Cuban confirmed that Kidd was returning. Kidd agreed to a three-year contract worth more than $25 million. The 37-year-old Kidd could finish his career where it started in 1994 – with the Mavericks.
Signed The Oklahoma City Thunder have signed guard James Harden, center B.J. Mullens and forward Serge Ibaka. Terms of the deals were not disclosed. Harden, the third overall pick in the draft, was a first-team All-American and the Pac-10 player of the year after averaging 20.1 points, 5.6 rebounds and 4.2 assists during his sophomore season at Arizona State. First-round draft pick Jordan Hill has signed with the New York Knicks. The Knicks announced that they had signed the forward from Arizona, who was the eighth overall pick in the draft.
Suspended Mexico soccer coach Javier Aguirre was suspended for three matches for starting a melee during a Gold Cup match against Panama, putting him in danger of missing a World Cup qualifier against the United States. With about 10 minutes to play in the 1-1 tie in Houston on Thursday night, Aguirre raised his leg and seemed to kick Ricardo Phillips as he dribbled near the sideline. After a linesman stopped play, Phillips shoved Aguirre. Players converged in the area and several got into shoving matches.
Died U.S. Paralympic swim coach Jimi Flowers died Friday in a climbing accident, the United States Olympic Committee said. He was 47. The accident occurred on Capitol Peak near Aspen, Colo. “Our entire USOC organization is shocked and saddened by the tragic death of our friend and colleague, Jimi Flowers,” said USOC acting CEO Stephanie Streeter.