Source: Las Vegas to Host NBA All-Stars

Las Vegas has been chosen to play host to the 2007 NBA All-Star game, a person familiar with the situation told Bloomberg News. It would be the first time the league’s midseason showcase is held in a city that doesn’t have a team.

NBA Commissioner David Stern will make the announcement in Las Vegas on Aug. 5, said the source, who asked not to be identified.

NBA executives have spent months negotiating with officials from Las Vegas, where casino operators agreed in April to remove the game from their betting lines. Stern made removal of the game from sports books a condition of awarding the event to the city.

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The NBA’s new collective bargaining agreement was finally completed and signed early today in New York, clearing the way for free-agent signings to begin Tuesday.

The salary cap will be set at $49.5 million, an increase of $5.63 million from last season.

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First-round draft choice Fran Vazquez has decided to remain in Europe instead of joining the Orlando Magic this season. The 6-foot-10 power forward from Spain was the 11th pick in the June draft and the first European player selected.

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Free-agent Jeff McInnis has reached an agreement with the New Jersey Nets on a one-year deal with an option for a second, his agent said. The 6-4 guard averaged 12.8 points for the Cleveland Cavaliers last season.

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New court dates have been set for the Indiana Pacer players charged for their roles in the Nov. 19 brawl with fans at the Palace of Auburn Hills. The players’ lawyers had objected to having the cases assigned together to Rochester Hills 52nd District Judge Lisa Asadoorian.

Judge Julie Nicholson will preside in the cases involving Ron Artest, Jermaine O’Neal and Stephen Jackson with a pretrial hearing Sept. 23. Judge Nancy Tolwin Carniak will hear David Harrison’s case, with a pretrial hearing Sept. 19, and Asadoorian will hear the case against Anthony Johnson, with jury selection Sept. 16.

Tennis

Anna-Lena Groenefeld rallied to defeat sixth-seeded Nathalie Dechy, 2-6, 6-2, 6-3, in the quarterfinals of the Bank of the West Classic at Palo Alto.

The 20-year-old has won five of her last six matches and advanced to her third semifinal of the season. She’ll play fourth-seeded Kim Clijsters, who defeated Daniela Hantuchova, 6-3, 6-1.

College Football

The Big Ten’s instant replay system will be used in all 28 bowl games this season if the NCAA approves a plan agreed upon by bowl championship series officials.

The Big Ten was the first conference to experiment with instant replay. Nine of 11 Division I-A conferences will use instant replay this season. The Western Athletic and Sun Belt conferences have not approved a system.

Jurisprudence

Remi Korchemny, the track coach involved in the BALCO steroid scandal, pleaded guilty in San Francisco to reduced charges, a move that probably will keep him out of prison.

The plea agreement, the fourth and last one in the case, ends a drug prosecution that prompted tighter testing rules in professional sports.

Korchemny, 73, of Castro Valley, Calif., was the coach of sprinters Kelli White and Dwain Chambers, both of whom are serving drug suspensions.

Surfing

Mark Richards, a four-time world champion, and Tom Carroll, a two-time champion, headline the latest group of inductees into the Surfers’ Hall of Fame in Huntington Beach.