before the Aussies hop onto the podium.Canada may have been the best team not in Brazil after failing to qualify. Missing Minnesota star Andrew Wiggins and a few others, the Canadians fell shor

CHICAGO -- Two U.S. Army teams have excelled at the World Parachuting Championships, with the 8-way formation skydiving team trouncing the competition in record-breaking style and the womens 4-way team taking gold after a nail-bitingly close contest.Late Wednesday, the Golden Knights 8-way team finished a full 40 points ahead of second-placed France in the 10-round competition at Skydive Chicago near Ottawa, Illinois.The eight skydivers also set a competition record, according to Nancy Koreen, spokeswoman for the United States Parachute Association. The team synchronized their moves in freefall at such speed that the F?d?ration A?ronautique Internationale judges scored them a 23.90-point average, the highest score in that discipline in the history of the World Parachuting Championships, Koreen said Thursday.The Golden Knights womens formation skydiving team also scooped gold for the U.S., although they fought to stay a nose ahead of France for almost the entire competition, pulling away in the last two of 10 rounds. The team included one civilian jumper: JaNette Leftkowitz stepped in to assist the Army team just four months before the competition after Golden Knights team member Angela Nichols withdrew because she was pregnant.I have tremendous respect for the Golden Knights, for their history and all the work they do, said Leftkowitz, who usually jumps with U.S. silver medal holders, SDC Rhythm XP. The organization and resources are incredible.The rivalry between the American and French womens teams has been going on for years, and France has won the last two world meets so we knew it was going to be close, she said.Another U.S. team, SDC Core, won the vertical formation skydiving gold on Tuesday.---Online: http://www.wpc2016.com Cheap Timberwolves Jerseys . Coach Mike Munchak says Fokou stretched ligaments in his left knee Oct. 13 against Seattle, which could keep out up to five weeks even though the linebacker didnt need surgery. Cheap Custom Timberwolves Jersey . That gave fans outside Joe Louis Arena another chance to ask for autographs from the 19-year-old whose stardom in the NHL has arrived earlier than most expected. http://www.customtimberwolvesjersey.com/custom-kevin-garnett-jersey-large-74n.html . Cuban testified Thursday that he was upset when the companys CEO told him news that would reduce the value of his shares, for which hed paid $7.5 million. But he said he did nothing improper when he sold those shares over the next two days. Custom Timberwolves T-shirts .com) - Christian Ponder will get another chance to prove himself for the Minnesota Vikings, with head coach Leslie Frazier announcing Wednesday that the struggling quarterback will start this weekends game against the Green Bay Packers. Custom Timberwolves Jersey China . The 29-year-old Baines has established himself as one of the top attacking full backs in the country and was the subject of two bids from United during the last off-season. Everton manager Roberto Martinez says that keeping Baines at the club is a "massive boost and exciting for the future" because he brings "maturity and football knowledge in a very specialized position on the pitch" and an "infectious and positive influence to the rest of the squad. RIO DE JANEIRO -- Mike Krzyzewski is heading out, Gregg Popovich is coming in and maybe LeBron James would even come back.Its a time of transition for both the U.S. Olympic team and international basketball and it starts, as usual, with the Americans on top.The U.S. won its third straight gold medal Sunday, beating Serbia 96-66 in the final game for Krzyzewski, who led the program for a decade and became the first coach to win three Olympic gold medals. He also guided the Americans to a pair of world championships, an 88-1 record and from the bottom back to the top.Its been a joy, Krzyzewski said. Ive been so lucky to have been given this opportunity.Now it goes to Popovich, the other coach Jerry Colangelo considered before choosing Krzyzewski after taking control of USA Basketball in 2005. Like Krzyzewski, a graduate of the U.S. Military Academy, Popovich is a military man who attended the Air Force Academy and has built one of sports most successful organizations while winning five championships with the San Antonio Spurs.Krzyzewski has used the military as an inspiration for USA Basketball, referring to playing for the team as service and sacrifice, and Popovich should be an ideal choice to continue that relationship.You have the best guy in the world whos going to coach the team now and that says a lot for the program thats been developed, Krzyzewski said.It was in perhaps its worst shape ever when he took over, coming off a bronze-medal finish in the 2004 Olympics and an even poorer finish two years earlier in the world basketball championship.The Americans lost their first tournament under Krzyzewski, the 2006 worlds, but havent dropped even a game since.Some things to watch as they try to stay on stop:LEBRON IN JAPAN?James passed on a fourth Olympics after leading Cleveland to the NBA championship, but may not be done wearing the red, white and blue. The U.S. career leader in scoring before Carmelo Anthony and Kevin Durant passed him during this tournament, James said during an interview with ESPN that he hasnt retired from international play and was leaving the door open for the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.STARS ALIGN?Besides James, players such as NBA MVP Stephen Curry and All-Stars and former Olympians Russell Westbrook, James Harden and Chriis Paul all withdrew from consideration for the Rio roster.dddddddddddd. Perhaps some or all of them would be interested in playing for the respected Popovich, who could perhaps even persuade his own star with the Spurs, Kawhi Leonard, to play after also pulling out.FIRST, THE MINOR LEAGUERSBefore Popovich coaches James or any other NBA stars, the Americans will likely call upon the minor leaguers to get them there.FIBA, basketballs world governing body, is introducing a new qualification system similar to the one in soccer, where teams will play home and road games against regional opponents to qualify for the 2019 Basketball World Cup in China. That tournament will then serve to qualify teams for Tokyo.The Americans dont know yet who their opponents will be but do know that some games will take place during the NBA season, ruling out Popovich and the worlds best players. They are likely to use NBA Development League players to carry them through until the A-team is available.WHO ARE THE CHALLENGERS?Serbia, Australia, Canada and others could soon be nipping at the Americans sneakers.With a second straight finals appearance in a major international tournament, the Serbs have established themselves as a rising global power. They had one of the youngest teams in the field -- forward Nikola Jokic of the Denver Nuggets is 21 -- and gave the U.S. a major fright in pool play before losing by three points.The Aussies sent their best team to Rio, but were still without Ben Simmons, the No. 1 overall pick in this years draft, and Dante Exum, still recovering from a knee injury. Australia was in line for its first medal before falling by one to Spain in the bronze-medal game. It seems to only be a matter of time before the Aussies hop onto the podium.Canada may have been the best team not in Brazil after failing to qualify. Missing Minnesota star Andrew Wiggins and a few others, the Canadians fell short in 2016 but with talent like Tristan Thompson and Tyler Ennis, they have their sights set on Tokyo.---AP Sports Writer Tom Withers contributed to this report.---Follow Brian Mahoney on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/Briancmahoney ' ' '