Bad Knees Force Houston to Retire From the Knicks

New York Knick guard Allan Houston retired Monday, unable to recover from knee injuries that kept him out much of the last two seasons.

A two-time All-Star and member of the 2000 Olympic team, Houston was one of the NBA’s best outside shooters before he was slowed by chronic knee soreness. He played in only 70 games over the last two seasons.

“I did everything I possibly could to get back and finish my career the way I would have liked to,” Houston said at the Knicks’ practice facility in Tarrytown, N.Y. “My injuries just wouldn’t let me do it.”

Houston, 34, appeared in only 20 games last season and averaged 11.9 points, his worst season since he was a rookie. Houston’s retirement leaves Larry Brown without his top outside shooter as he begins his first season as Knick coach. New York could use Jamal Crawford or off-season acquisition Quentin Richardson at the shooting guard spot opposite Stephon Marbury.

Houston, who also played for Detroit, averaged 17.3 points during his 12 NBA seasons, including a career-high 22.5 in 2002-03, his last full season. He shot 40.2% from three-point range.

Meanwhile, Knick owner James Dolan, 50, had heart bypass surgery in New York and is expected to make a full recovery.

Jason Collier’s family asked that results of his autopsy be kept private until after Wednesday’s funeral.

Collier, the Atlanta Hawks’ 28-year-old center, died early Saturday after he had trouble breathing in his north Georgia home.

Cleveland Cavalier standout LeBron James was tired but happy to be back at practice, less than a week after the forward was hospitalized for a virus.

James, 20, is taking antibiotics and still has some chest pain but said he was feeling better daily. Team physicians first thought James strained a pectoral muscle, but tests revealed pleurisy, an inflammation of the thin layers of tissue covering the lungs and chest cavity.

The NBA announced in a memo to teams that a minimum dress code would go into effect at the start of the regular season Nov. 1.

Players will be expected to wear business casual attire whenever they participate in team or league activities, including arriving at games, leaving games, conducting interviews and making promotional or other appearances.

Players will no longer be able to wear:

* Sleeveless shirts

* Shorts

* T-shirts

* Chains, pendants, or medallions over clothes

* Sunglasses indoors

* Headphones (other than on the team bus or plane, or in the team locker room).

Players will also be required to wear sport coats on the bench when they are not in uniform.

Commissioner David Stern is expected to announce the penalty for dress code violations next week.

The Philadelphia 76ers’ Allen Iverson (knee) and Chris Webber (thigh) each had an MRI exam on his leg, and neither has a serious injury.

TENNIS

Struggling Henman

Eliminates Dent

Tim Henman won only his third match since Wimbledon, beating Taylor Dent, 6-2, 6-4, at the Madrid Masters in Spain.

Agustin Calleri defeated Albert Costa, 6-0, 7-5, and Sebastien Grosjean topped Feliciano Lopez, 7-5, 4-6, 6-2, saving the only break point he faced.

Juan Ignacio Chela beat Nicolas Massu, 6-2, 6-3; Jurgen Melzer of Austria outlasted Vince Spadea, 3-6, 6-4, 6-3; and Tommy Haas defeated Andrei Pavel, 7-6 (4), 6-2.

Seven Spaniards remain in the tournament, including top-seeded Rafael Nadal. Andy Roddick is seeded second.

Bulgaria’s Magdalena Maleeva, who has said this tournament will be her last, beat Russia’s Anna Chakvetadze, 6-1, 6-1, in the opening round of the Zurich Open at Switzerland.

Seventh-seeded Anastasia Myskina advanced when Fed Cup teammate Vera Zvonareva retired while trailing, 6-2, 3-0.

The four top seeds -- Lindsay Davenport, Amelie Mauresmo, Mary Pierce and Elena Dementieva -- all have a bye into the second round.

Tennis is moving closer to using instant replay, though when or where that might happen isn’t clear.

The International Tennis Federation approved the latest version of Hawk-Eye Officiating after tests last week. The system, which has been used during television broadcasts, didn’t meet approval when it auditioned in July.

It’s now up to individual tournaments on the WTA and ATP tours to decide whether they want to use the technology to review calls. The ITF recommended that tournaments do their own testing at their stadiums before using Hawk-Eye Officiating.

BASEBALL

Yankees Permitted

to Interview Mazzone

The New York Yankees began pressing ahead with their off-season transformation, asking and receiving permission from the Atlanta Braves to speak with pitching coach Leo Mazzone.

Mazzone, 57, would replace Mel Stottlemyre, who had held the job since Manager Joe Torre took over after the 1995 season and said last week that he did not plan to return. Mazzone has been with the Braves since 1979.

Other possible candidates include Yankee bullpen coach Neil Allen, Yankee scout Joe Kerrigan and Columbus pitching coach Gil Patterson.

HORSE RACING

Testing Program

to Change Wednesday

Beginning Wednesday at Santa Anita and other California tracks, the California Horse Racing Board will take over testing for illegal alkalizing agents that have been said to reduce fatigue in horses.

Previously, testing for the mixtures, which are called milkshakes, was done by an industry consortium that included the tracks themselves.

Because the tests no longer fall under house rules, penalties for violators can be more severe. Trainers whose horses exceed the alkaline thresholds are subject to fines and suspensions, and purse money earned by the horses can be taken away.

SOCCER

CONCACAF Gold Cup

Moved Up One Month

The CONCACAF Gold Cup will be moved up a month in 2007 and will again be played in the United States.

The 12-nation tournament will run from June 6-24, the Confederation of North and Central American and Caribbean Football said in New York.

This year’s tournament, won by the United States, was played from July 6-24.