Pacers aide to succeed Karl as Nuggets coach

Indiana Pacers assistant coach Brian Shaw has agreed to succeed George Karl as coach of the Denver Nuggets, a person with knowledge of the negotiations told The Associated Press.

The Nuggets called a news conference for this afternoon to introduce their new coach.

Shaw has interviewed about a dozen times for head coaching positions but kept coming up short until Monday.

Also: San Francisco Giants center fielder Angel Pagan is scheduled for surgery today to repair a tendon in his left hamstring. Pagan is expected be out at least another 12 weeks.

Tampa Bay Rays right-hander Alex Cobb favors pitchers having the option of wearing protective headgear on the mound. Cobb returned to Tropicana Field on Monday, nine days after being struck in the right ear by a ball hit by Kansas City’s Eric Hosmer on June 15.

The IndyCar Series says it will no longer penalize teams for certain engine changes, adding a rule that allows changes in cases of engine failure during on-track team, rookie, manufacturer and straight-line tests. Helio Castroneves had the pole for Sunday’s race at Iowa Speedway, but started 11th after an unapproved engine change and finished eighth.

Forty-eight UNLV athletes earned the 2012-2013 Mountain West Scholar-Athlete Award, the league office announced.

The conference had 623 athletes honored with the award. For the second consecutive year, the women’s swimming and diving team was tops for UNLV, with 12 selections.