Dolphins acquire Brandon Marshall from Broncos

The Denver Broncos traded wide receiver Brandon Marshall to the Miami Dolphins for a second-round pick in next week’s draft and a second-rounder in 2011.

Marshall is expected to sign a long-term contract that he’s been seeking for over a year.

Marshall has long wanted out of Denver, and got his wish when the Broncos pulled off their second blockbuster deal in as many seasons under Coach Josh McDaniels. Denver sent quarterback Jay Cutler to Chicago last April for Kyle Orton and draft picks.

Marshall’s four-year stint in Denver was filled with fantastic plays but also plenty of frustration.

He posted his third consecutive 100-catch season last year and made his second straight trip to the Pro Bowl despite several run-ins with McDaniels both on and off the field. He was suspended for insubordination in training camp and again for the season finale after he was tardy for treatment on a hamstring injury the team felt he was exaggerating.

Still, Marshall caught 101 passes last season, including an NFL-record 21 in a loss at Indianapolis, for 1,120 yards. His 10 touchdowns were a career best.

Miami is a surprise destination for Marshall because Dolphins Coach Tony Sparano hadn’t shown much interest in acquiring him. But football czar Bill Parcells, who has final say on personnel matters in Miami, has never shied away from talented-but-troubled wide receivers, working with Terry Glenn in New England, Keyshawn Johnson in New York and Terrell Owens in Dallas.

Marshall, who has 327 career catches for 4,019 yards and 25 touchdowns in four seasons, represents the biggest trade acquisition by the Dolphins since running back Ricky Williams went to Miami in 2002 for four draft picks, including two first-rounders.

The trade also shakes things up in the AFC East, where the New York Jets acquired another talented but troubled wide receiver in Santonio Holmes from the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday in exchange for a fifth-round pick in this year’s draft.

The Dolphins have been desperate for a deep threat at receiver to loosen up defenses for their potentially potent ground game and young, strong-armed quarterback Chad Henne.

Stan Kroenke isn’t asking NFL to change ownership rules

Billionaire Stan Kroenke isn’t asking the NFL to waive its cross-ownership rules in his bid to purchase the remaining 60 percent of the St. Louis Rams.

League spokesman Greg Aiello told the Associated Press that Kroenke “is not seeking a waiver of the rule. He has always said he would comply with our rules.”

That means Kroenke will have to surrender his principal stake in the NBA’s Denver Nuggets and the NHL’s Colorado Avalanche to become majority owner of the Rams. Among the possibilities is handing control of those teams over to his 29-year-old son, Josh, a Nuggets executive.

Kroenke, who has owned 40% of the Rams since their move to St. Louis from Los Angeles in 1995, has declined to comment about his decision to buy the NFL team outright.

Ben Roethlisberger reports to conditioning

Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger took part in offseason conditioning work for the first time this spring.

Roethlisberger reported to the Steelers’ practice facility one day after he met with Commissioner Roger Goodell in New York to discuss the two-time Super Bowl winner’s off-field problems.

Most Steelers players began the weightlifting and conditioning sessions on March 29, but Roethlisberger stayed away to avoid being a distraction. He is expected to take part Monday in the Steelers’ first on-field practices since the season ended in January.

Roethlisberger learned Monday he will not be charged for the alleged sexual assault of a Georgia college student last month. However, he could be disciplined by the league or the Steelers for his conduct. He also remains involved in an ongoing civil lawsuit in Nevada in which he is accused of sexual assault by a hotel employee.

Ryan Leaf sentenced to probation

Former NFL quarterback Ryan Leaf was sentenced to 10 years of probation after pleading guilty to eight felony drug charges in Texas.

State District Judge John B. Board also fined Leaf $20,000. Leaf pleaded guilty to seven counts of obtaining a controlled substance by fraud and one count of delivery of a simulated controlled substance.

The 33-year-old’s mother sat behind him in the Amarillo courtroom during sentencing.

Leaf told reporters after the hearing that he continued to use prescription pain medicine even after he recognized that he had a problem.

Palmdale to host Amgen Tour of California

Palmdale is replacing Pasadena as the host city for the start of Stage 6 of the Amgen Tour of California May 21.

Because of winter mudslide damage to a portion of Angeles Crest Highway that was part of the stage that will finish with a mountain climb to Big Bear, the route had to be altered.

The stage will begin in Palmdale, head south out of town on Sierra Road and then make a left turn onto the Angeles Forest Highway. During the 135-mile stage there will be more than 12,000 feet of elevation. The stage will end at 7,000 feet above sea level at the Snow Summit ski area. It’s the first alpine finish in the 5-year-old race.

The field is expected to include seven-time Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong and three-time defending Tour of California champion Levi Leipheimer. The race runs from May 16-23 and will cover 800 miles from the start in Nevada City, Calif., to the finish in Thousand Oaks.

-- Diane Pucin

U.S. Fed Cup team named

U.S. Fed Cup captain Mary Joe Fernandez announced a team of Melanie Oudin, Bethanie Mattek-Sands and doubles specialist Liezel Huber to play Russia April 24 and 25 in Birmingham, Ala.

There is still one spot open, and Fernandez said she is holding it in the hopes that either Venus or Serena Williams would be available, though that seems unlikely. Serena hasn’t played since the Australian Open and withdrew from the Sony Ericsson Key Biscayne event last month with a knee injury. Venus said on Twitter earlier this week that she had taken a hard fall off a bike.

Most of the top Russians, including Maria Sharapova, Svetlana Kuznetsova and Dinara Safina, have indicated they won’t be playing. The matches will be played on a hard court, even though the WTA Tour has moved into the clay court part of the season. That makes a hard transition for players who have begun honing their games for the French Open next month.

Fed Cup rules require nations to submit an initial roster of three or four players no less than 10 days before the start of play.

-- Diane Pucin

Butler’s Hayward to enter NBA draft

Butler forward Gordon Hayward is going to enter the NBA draft but will not sign with an agent, allowing him to return to school if he withdraws his name by May 8.

The school confirmed the decision Wednesday afternoon.

The 6-foot-9 sophomore is expected to become the first Butler player taken in the first round, possibly in the top 15.

Hayward led the Bulldogs with 15.5 points per game and into the national championship game.

Purdue forward JaJuan Johnson and guard E’Twaun Moore plan to skip their senior seasons and enter the NBA draft.

The school announced Wednesday that the pair would not hire agents, which means they could withdraw their names from draft consideration by May 8.

Etc.

Washington Mystics four-time All-Star guard Alana Beard will miss the 2010 WNBA season because of an ankle injury.

The Mystics announced Wednesday that Beard will have surgery next week to repair a tendon in her ankle. She hurt the ankle at the end of the regular season last year and aggravated it during the playoffs.

The Tulsa Shock have acquired three-point specialist Shanna Crossley from the San Antonio Silver Stars in exchange for reserve forward Crystal Kelly in coach Nolan Richardson’s latest tinkering with the relocated franchise’s roster.

Indianapolis 500 adds “shootout” to determine pole position

Winning the Indianapolis 500 pole just got trickier — and more rewarding.

The top nine qualifiers on May 22 must return to the track for a late afternoon, 90-minute “shootout” to claim the No. 1 starting spot. The winner will earn an additional $100,000 over last year’s winnings.

It’s the latest change in a month that already took away two of the traditional four qualifying days. The new plan is to fill the top 24 spots on Pole Day with the remaining nine spots on Bump Day. Other cars can then bump their way into the 33-car starting grid.