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This Week in Sports :: February 4-8, 2008

Feb 07, 2008

A couple of blockbuster trades went down in the NBA and a college basketball coaching legend hangs it up. See what else happened this week in sports!

Blockbuster NBA Trades

Some of the NBA's biggest stars switched zip codes this week. First, the Memphis Grizzlies traded All Star forward Pau Gasol for the Los Angeles Lakers' Kwame Brown. The trade clearly favored the Lakers who are now legitimate champion contenders. On Wednesday, the Phoenix Suns pulled off one of the most shocking trades of recent past by sending All Star Shawn Marion for an aging Shaquille O'Neal. The trade seems to contradict the Suns' uptempo style, so the jury is still out who comes out the winner in that trade.

Bobby Knight Retires

After 44 years of coaching college basketball, Bobby Knight retired on Monday. The former Texas Tech coach was the winningest coach in the history of Division I basketball with 902 career wins. He spent the last seven seasons coaching Texas Tech - taking them to four NCAA Tournaments. His most famous coaching tenure was at Indiana where he coached for 30 years and won three National Championships. Knight was one of the most controversial coaches in history because of his temper and was even fired at Indiana for allegedly choking a player. But regardless, the 67-year-old Knight ran clean programs, he was never punished by the NCAA for any recruiting violations. His son Pat will take over coaching duties at Texas Tech.

Mets Ink Sanatana

On Tuesday, two-time Cy Young winner Johan Santana signed a six-year, $137.5 million contract with the New York Mets. The Venezuelan native has been a three time All Star and a gold glove winner in his seven-year career with the Minnesota Twins. He has a 99-44 career record with 1,381 strikeouts and a 3.22 ERA. This deal makes the 28-year-old Sanatana, the highest paid pitcher in Major League Baseball and the second highest player in the whole league behind the Yankees' Alex Rodriguez.

Notes Around the Sports World

  • Boston Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling's upcoming season may be in jeopardy after it was revealed he may need surgery for his injured shoulder. The 41-year-old pitcher helped Boston win a World Series last year.
  • In the biggest college basketball rivalry, the number two ranked Duke Blue Devils, got the best of an injured, number three ranked North Carolina Tar Heels, 89-78 on Wednesday night.
  • The Dallas Stars have emerged as the best NHL team in the Western Conference, winning eight of their last 10 games.
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