Agent: Turkoglu plans to opt out of contract

Hedo Turkoglu's agent told the Orlando Sentinel yesterday that the Orlando Magic small forward will opt out of his contract and become a free agent in two weeks.

The Magic has the chance to re-sign Turkoglu before he officially announces he will opt out of his contract June 30, the first day that free agents can declare.

Turkoglu is scheduled to make $7.3 million next season in the final year of a six-year, $36 million deal.

Bill Laimbeer resigned as coach of the WNBA champion Detroit Shock three games into the season in hopes of landing an NBA job.

Former 76er Rick Mahorn, a teammate of Laimbeer's from their Detroit Pistons days, was promoted from assistant to coach.

Laimbeer led the Shock to three titles in six seasons.

The Coyotes are staying in Phoenix. A bankruptcy judge has rejected the proposed sale of the team to Canadian billionaire Jim Balsillie, who would have moved the team to Hamilton, Ontario.

Todd Richards will be the second coach in Minnesota Wild history, league sources told the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

Richards was an assistant with the San Jose Sharks. Jacques Lemaire resigned as Wild coach in April

Pittsburgh police estimated that 375,000 people converged downtown for a parade in honor of the Stanley Cup champion Penguins.

Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals was the most-watched NHL game in 36 years.

The Penguins' championship-clinching 2-1 win over the Detroit Red Wings on Friday averaged 8 million viewers on NBC. That was the highest figure since Game 6 of the 1973 Stanley Cup Finals between Montreal and Chicago, the network said.

The Carolina Hurricanes and coach Paul Maurice agreed on a three-year contract. The team said Ron Francis would return as associate head coach and take on the title of director of player personnel.

Champions Tour golfer Ken Green's lower right leg was amputated in a three-hour operation at University of Mississippi Medical Center, according to his agent, Kevin Richardson.

Green was injured last week in a recreational vehicle accident that killed his brother and girlfriend.

Elsewhere: Promoter Bob Arum says he is negotiating a fight between junior welterweight Manny Pacquiao and welterweight Miguel Cotto that is penciled in for Nov. 14 in Las Vegas. . . . Carlos Pardo was killed in a crash during the final laps of a NASCAR Mexico race, organizers said. Pardo was leading the race in the 97th lap Sunday when his car was nudged by a competitor from behind and slid sideways into a wall at about 120 m.p.h. . . . Mireia Vila Cabiro, a 6-foot guard/forward from Badalona, Spain, signed a letter of intent to play basketball for the St. Joseph's women's team this season. . . . Virginia beat Cal State-Fullerton, 7-5, at the College World Series in Omaha, Neb. Also, Mikie Mahtook, Austin Nola and Blake Dean homered as LSU beat Arkansas, 9-1.