Raiders hire former Washington OC Turner
LAS VEGAS >> Former Washington Commanders offensive coordinator Scott Turner is joining the Las Vegas Raiders’ staff, likely helping oversee the passing game.
The 40-year-old Turner was the Commanders’ offensive coordinator the last three seasons before he was fired Jan. 10. Washington ranked 20th in total offense, 21st in passing and 24th in scoring this season.
Turner, the son of longtime former NFL offensive coordinator and head coach Norv Turner, oversaw eight quarterbacks during his time with the Commanders. Their offense was ranked in the bottom half of the league all three seasons.
Joining the Raiders represents a little bit of a homecoming for Turner, who was a backup quarterback at UNLV in 2003 and 2004 and still has a Las Vegas area code for his phone number.
Hockey
BETTMAN DEFENDS HANDLING OF PRIDE NIGHT SITUATIONS >> NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman at his state of the game news conference Saturday at All-Star Weekend defended the way the league and two teams handled situations that arose regarding Pride night celebrations.
Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Ivan Provorov did not take part in warmups Jan. 18 because he refused to wear a Pridethemed jersey. Nine days later, the New York Rangers opted not to wear Pride jerseys or use Pride stick tape as part of their night despite previously advertising they planned to do so.
Bettman said tolerance of varying viewpoints was part of being “open, welcoming and inclusive.”
“You know what our goals, our values and our intentions are across the league, whether it’s at the league level or at the club level,” he said. “But we also have to respect some individual choice, and some people are more comfortable embracing themselves in causes than others. And part of being diverse and welcoming is understanding those differences.”
Bettman said the NHL was not accepting bigotry or promoting homophobia.
NHL ALL-STAR FINAL SET >> The Central Division and the Atlantic Division have reached the final of the NHL All-Star Game.
One of them will actually win the thing.
Florida’s Matthew Tkachuk had three goals and two assists — his five points tying a single-game record for the 3-on-3 All-Star format — in the Atlantic’s 10-6 win over the Metropolitan Division in the second semifinal at the All-Star Game.
In the opener, Arizona’s Clayton Keller had two goals and an assist, Colorado’s Nathan MacKinnon scored twice and the Central moved into the title matchup with a 6-4 win over the Pacific.
Baseball
FRIED LOSES IN ARBITRATION >> Pitcher Max Fried lost to the Atlanta Braves in salary arbitration, and will make $13.5 million in the upcoming season instead of his $15 million request.
Fried won a $6.85 million salary last year in arbitration instead of the team’s $6.6 million proposal.
Media
LONGTIME WRITER DIES >> Retired longtime Associated Press sports writer Denne H. Freeman, whose 32 years with the AP included covering all five Super Bowl championships won by the Dallas Cowboys and many golf majors, died after a series of health issues. He was 86.
The Dallas-based Freeman retired from the AP in the summer of 1999
Tennis
U.S. ADVANCES TO GROUP STAGE >> The United States swept its way into the group stage of the Davis Cup Finals, getting the winning point in a 4-0 victory over Uzbekistan from the doubles team of Rajeev Ram and Austin Krajicek.
They beat Sergey Fomin and Sanjar Fayziev 6-2, 6-4, after Tommy Paul and Mackenzie McDonald had won singles matches Friday in Tashkent.