IN BRIEF

PRO BASKETBALL

Iverson, 76ers discuss possibility of return

Allen Iverson and the Philadelphia 76ers have met to discuss a possible return to the team.

Team president Ed Stefanski said in a statement that both parties remain noncommittal about a final decision after a nearly two-hour meeting Monday in Dallas. The 76ers were in town to play the Dallas Mavericks on Monday night.

Iverson, his agent and business manager met with Stefanski, coach Eddie Jordan and two other members of the organization during the first formal meeting between the Sixers and their former Most Valuable Player.

Stefanski said the Sixers "will continue to discuss internally whether or not to pursue this course."

The 10-time All-Star, who retired last week, is among the free-agent candidates the Sixers are considering to replace injured point guard Lou Williams, who's expected to miss eight weeks after jaw surgery.

Also: New Jersey Nets general manager Kiki Vandeweghe will coach the team for the rest of the season, a person with knowledge of the team's plans said.

Vandeweghe won't coach his first game with the team until Friday, the person told The Associated Press.

Chicago Bulls guard Kirk Hinrich will be out one to two weeks with a sprained left thumb, an injury he sustained during a practice last week while the team was on a West Coast road trip.

Disgraced track star Marion Jones is training for a comeback -- in the WNBA.

San Antonio Silver Stars coach Dan Hughes confirmed Jones has been training with his assistants to possibly play in the WNBA, more than a year after the 34-year-old was released from federal prison for lying about her doping use.

The New York Times first reported that Jones has been working on her skills and conditioning in San Antonio since October.

MISCELLANEOUS

Struggling Wranglers home to face Victoria

The Wranglers will try to snap a seven-game losing streak today, when they host the Victoria Salmon Kings at the Orleans Arena in the opener of a six-game series between the teams.

Las Vegas (6-12-1, 13 points), which is tied with Victoria (6-11-1, 13) and the Stockton Thunder for the fewest points in the ECHL, hasn't won since Nov. 12 when it beat Utah 4-0 in its only victory in nine games this season against the Grizzlies.

Coming off a pair of losses at Bakersfield (Calif.), 4-1 on Friday and 3-2 on Saturday, the Wranglers received goaltender Billy Sauer on loan from the Lake Erie Monsters of the American Hockey League.

Sauer, 21, is 2-2-1 in seven games this season for the ECHL's Charlotte Checkers and Toledo Walleye.

Also: Danica Patrick signed a three-year extension with Andretti Autosport.

Her NASCAR future? Still unclear.

Patrick signed with the team before the 2007 season and became the first woman to win an IndyCar Series race at the 2008 Japan Indy 30.

Patrick is reportedly working on a deal that would partner her on a limited Nationwide Series schedule with JR Motorsports, the team owned by both Hendrick and Dale Earnhardt Jr., but no announcement was made.

Washington Capitals star Alex Ovechkin left Monday night's game at Carolina in the opening period with an apparent right knee injury.

A spokesman for the Capitals said Ovechkin's injury would be evaluated overnight and that any further information from the team would come early today.