redoubtable Kapil Dev and the entire stadium waited with

A new owner is in place. A new coach is on the way. And for the first time in 14 years, Sacramento Kings fans can celebrate a new era. The Maloof family completed the sale of the Kings and Sleep Train Arena to a group led by TIBCO Software chairman Vivek Ranadive on Friday, officially transferring ownership of the NBA franchise. Ranadives group acquired a 65 per cent controlling interest in the team at a total franchise valuation of more than $534 million, topping the NBA record of $450 million that Joe Lacob and Peter Guber bought the Golden State Warriors for in 2010. "We are pleased for both the Maloof family and the Ranadive group, but particularly pleased for the fans of the Kings," NBA Commissioner David Stern said. Brothers George, Joe and Gavin Maloof also released statements thanking NBA owners, Stern and the familys limited partners with the Kings. George Maloof specifically praised Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson and the City Council "for their efforts and loyalty to the Sacramento community." Ranadive already has been busy making moves to rebuild the fallen franchise. The Kings have an agreement in place with Warriors assistant Mike Malone to become their head coach, a person familiar with the decision told The Associated Press. The person, speaking on condition of anonymity because they werent authorized to speak publicly, said Malone was Ranadives top choice. Malones hiring officially ends Keith Smarts tenure. Smart took over the Kings for the fired Paul Westphal in January 2012 and had one year remaining on his contract. Ranadive, formerly a minority owner or the Warriors, still has to hire a general manager -- a move that typically comes before finding a coach; the contract for president of basketball operations Geoff Petrie ends June 30. In a statement released through the Kings, Ranadive thanked all involved. "Mayor Kevin Johnson and the leadership group of Sacramento should be commended for their relentless efforts, hard work and tireless drive to keep the Kings in the city where they belong," Ranadive said. "We also extend our thanks to the Maloof Family for their support and co-operation throughout the sale process. Because of their efforts, this team has risen to an impressive legacy, which includes the most passionate fanbase in the NBA. "Again, thank you to Sacramento Kings fans for their unwavering commitment and loyalty to myself and this organization. Without them, this success would not have become a reality. At the end of the day, this team belongs to the people of Sacramento, and our mission is to support them. We are excited to begin the process of building a 21st century franchise that will be a source of pride and excitement for years to come." The sales completion capped a comeback few outside Californias capital city believed would happen. After owners blocked the Maloofs agreement with investor Chris Hansen to buy and relocate the Kings to Seattle earlier in May at a total franchise valuation of $625 million, the family pushed ahead with the "backup offer" to sell the team to Ranadives group. The Sacramento group also includes 24 Hour Fitness founder Mark Mastrov, former Facebook senior executive Chris Kelly and the Jacobs family that owns communications giant Qualcomm. "We congratulate Vivek Ranadive and the entire Sacramento investor group for their willingness to come forward and purchase the franchise for the people of Sacramento. We are confident they will provide the stewardship necessary to continue to guide the organization to successful levels," George Maloof said. The transfer of the team ended the Maloof familys topsy-turvy reign as majority owners of the team. The Kings reached the playoffs for the first seven years under the Maloofs and missed each of the last seven. Sacramento won back-to-back Pacific Division titles in the 2001-02 and 2002-03 seasons, advancing to the 2002 Western Conference finals, when it lost in heartbreaking fashion to the eventual champion Los Angeles Lakers in seven games. After that, the franchise started its slow and painful decline. The Maloofs, once the toast of Californias capital city, fell out of favour with fans. The suburban arena aged rapidly. Ticket sales declined. And the family explored moving the franchise to Las Vegas, Anaheim and Virginia Beach over several years until announcing an agreement with Hansens group in January. Led by Johnson, Sacramento fought back and made it too difficult for NBA owners to allow the Kings to move to Seattle. The mayor, a former NBA All-Star guard, got the Sacramento City Council to approve a non-binding financing plan for a $447 million downtown arena with a $258 million public subsidy. The Maloofs still had to agree to sell the franchise to Ranadives group. And in the end, they did -- after raising the value of the franchise to a record price. "The success of the Sacramento Kings has been due largely in part to the dedication and enthusiasm of our team members, coaches, players, and fans," Joe Maloof said. "Since our family has owned the franchise, the people of Sacramento have warmly brought the Kings into their hearts and for that we will always be grateful. As we look forward to an exciting new chapter in our family business enterprise, we will never forget the people of Sacramento and everything they have done for the Kings organization." Phil Jackson Jersey . - The Oakland Raiders re-signed offensive lineman Khalif Barnes on Friday. Carmelo Anthony Jersey . Defencemen Drew Doughty, Shea Weber and forward Ryan Getzlaf also scored for the Canadians, who started their gold-medal defence 2-0. Goalie Roberto Luongo, getting the call in place of Game 1 starter Carey Price, was solid when needed in making 23 saves for the shutout. http://www.cheapknicksjerseyschina.com/tracy-mcgrady-jersey/ .com) - The Calgary Flames aim to bounce back from their first regulation home loss of the campaign on Friday night when they host a Detroit Red Wings club that they swept in three meetings a season ago. Knicks Jerseys From China . Carey Price didnt, but he still came out on top against one of his rivals for the No. 1 job at the Sochi Games. The Anahim Lake, B.C., native was stellar in making 39 saves in his home province and Lars Eller got credit for a bizarre short-handed winner as the Canadiens defeated the Canucks 4-1. Charles Oakley Jersey . PAUL, Minn. I still remember the smell of the newspaper when he hit that six that shattered a generation of hope. At the age of ten, I was standing in the lobby of our hotel in Sikkim, holding that hitherto unclaimed newspaper with trembling hands, as I visualised a hapless Chetan Sharma running to the wicket like a gullible lamb toward a lions den. Sharma then bowled what can best be described as a lolly, which was launched into orbit by Javed Miandad, doing his best impersonation of Obelixs PFAFF!!. The legend goes that the ball was never recovered because it melted into thin air upon crossing the boundary.It did not matter that I had heard about this unfortunate event on the train to Sikkim the previous night. I was travelling on a school excursion and came across a crestfallen passenger who told me that the world had just ended in Sharjah. However, I did not truly believe him until I read about it in the newspaper the next morning. This was true of most matches that I watched in my childhood. To me, they only materialised when they appeared in the newspaper the next day.Take, for instance, Ravi Shastris heroic 107 on a bouncy pitch in Barbados; it was an innings that should have won him an award for bravery. It came against a fearsome West Indies attack that read: Marshall, Ambrose, Bishop and Walsh. Even as the rest of the Indian batting line-up crumbled around him in a heap to 63 for 6, the statuesque Shastri struck 12 boundaries in a dogged riposte. I followed the match through a newspaper, with a one-day delay and a heavy dose of imagination. He must have hit the peerless Malcolm Marshall for at least a couple of fours. Surely one of them was a chapati shot.You see, Shastri was my hero because he played these match-defining innings that became commonplace when a curly-haired 16-year-old emerged to dominate the sport. Until Sachin Tendulkar arrived, I drew succour from the many displays of batting obduracy from Shastri, who seemed to use a bat to win a staring contest on the pitch. His was the first name I checked on the scorecard in the newspaper, even if his more gifted, but infuriatingly fragile colleagues scored more runs. I knew from my newspaper snippets that Shastri had often patted down many thunderbolts as an opener before he gave way to the frail wizardry of Mohammad Azharuddin.One year, I willed myself to learn the Telugu alphabet because the Telugu daily showed up at our doorstep a couple of hours before the English newspapers. It gave me great joy to read A..ja.. ha.. roo..din next to the score of 109, a withering display of artistry in an otherwise soporific series played on dead pitches in Pakistan. India somehow claimed a 0-0 moral victory in that series. No matter the result, there was unbridled joy in reading about my Hyderabadi idols conquest of Mt Imran. Imran Khan was caned to the tune of 100 runs, which was fitting balm for the failure of a certain RJ Shastri, who scored a total of 16 runs in two innings.dddddddddddd I would be remiss in not mentioning young Tendulkars brilliant 59, in only his second Test, a harbinger of many superhuman feats. Newspapers have given way to a digital form of media, most of which are quite effective in representing this great sport, but nothing that I tell my seven-year-old son will convince him that reading cricket news in the early morning newspaper was a multi-sensory experience. It involved touch, smell, sight and, most importantly, boundless imagination. Even as every word unravelled in front of my eyes, my mind drew batting arcs and banana swings to fashion memorable suspense-filled storylines.There is a distinct memory in my mind of a match that I went to see in Lal Bahadur Stadium in Hyderabad in 1987. I was 11. This was the second ODI between Pakistan and India. At this time, India were finding every possible way to lose to Pakistan, and I held very little hope that the result would be any different that day. India scored a respectable 212 in 44 overs, powered by Shastris 69 not out. One of his two sixes landed a few feet from my seat in the pavilion, which is one of my career highlights as a cricket fan.Pakistan inevitably began chasing down the target, powered by Saleem Maliks 84, much to the chagrin of the full crowd in Hyderabad. Run by run the target was being shaved down with precision. Still, India managed to keep the game close till the very end. In fact, so close that the run equation came down to Pakistan needing two off the last ball. Abdul Qadir faced the redoubtable Kapil Dev and the entire stadium waited with bated breath. What happened next was a blur.Kapil Dev ran in and bowled, Qadir tried an agricultural swing. The ball squirted off his edge and then there was bedlam. It appeared that Qadir had run himself out trying to get the winning run and the scores were miraculously tied! Nobody in the crowd was quite sure what had happened. After a few minutes, there was an announcement on the speaker saying that India had won the match because they had lost fewer wickets. While the crowd roared its approval, I sensed that something was off. The result was surreal. The ending was farcical theatre.I realised that there was only one way to fix the confusion in my mind. The next morning, I jumped out of bed at 6am and ran excitedly towards our verandah. Lying on the floor was a fresh, untouched copy of the Hindu. I got goosebumps as I began to slowly peel apart the pages to reveal the match that I was going to watch again.Want to be featured on Inbox? Send your articles to us here, with Inbox in the subject line. ' ' '