NBA to pocket big $$ from ads

After hinting at it for years, the NBA will allow ads to appear on jerseys beginning in the 2017-18 season. The three-year pilot program will begin the same year that Nike takes over from Adidas as the league’s uniform supplier.

The ads will measure 2.5 inches-by-2.5 inches and appear on the left shoulder.

According to Bloomberg, the ads will generate $150 million in revenue, which will be split between the teams and a revenue-sharing pool. — Bernie Augustine

Silver says a North Carolina law that limits anti-discrimination protections for lesbian, gay and transgender people remains “problematic” for the league, but he says there is no decision on moving next year’s All-Star Game out of Charlotte.

BLACKHAWKS GET EVEN

Andrew Shaw stuffed home a rebound on a power play with 4:19 remaining, minutes after the Blackhawks won a coach’s challenge to negate a goal, and the defending Stanley Cup champions pulled even with the host Blues in their first-round series with a 3-2 victory.

Tyler Johnson scored a pair of third-period goals, helping the Lightning beat the visiting Red Wings 5-2 in Game 2 and go up 2-0 in their first-round playoff series. A bloody brawl involving several players capped this one, with 14 penalties called — including a game misconduct on Justin Abdelkader — with 54 seconds left.

HARVIN CALLS IT QUITS

Percy Harvin put an end to his sevenyear NFL career. The 27-year-old former Jet wide receiver played five games for the Bills last season before being placed on injured reserve with lingering hip and knee injuries.

TWINS, BRAVES FINALLY WIN

The Twins (1-9) became the last team in the major leagues to win this season, after Byung Ho Park drove in the go-ahead run with a double in the home eighth for a 5-4 victory over the Angels. The Braves (1-0) beat the host Marlins, 6-3, earlier in the night to snap their own season-opening nine-game skid.