What is going on with the Los Angeles Sparks? That might be the biggest question in the WNBA heading down the final stretch of the regular season.The Sparks won their first 11 games, dominated throughout the first three months of the season and entered the Olympic break with the best record in the league. But things have changed.Out of nowhere, Los Angeles returned from the Olympic break with back-to-back loses. The Sparks will try to snap out of that funk Thursday when they travel to face the last-place San Antonio Stars.The Stars (6-20) went into the tank shortly after leading scorer Kayla McBride was lost for the season with a foot injury in early July. San Antonio is 1-7 since McBride went down and is coming off of an 89-62 blowout loss to the Connecticut Sun.The Stars rank 12th in points per game and 11th in assists per game. The Sparks held the Stars to 61 points in back-to-back wins in early June and have beaten the Stars in five straight games overall.Los Angeles recent struggles have not impacted the play of forward Nneka Ogwumike, who is among the league leaders in points and rebounds.Turnovers have been a major issue during Los Angeles recent struggles.The Sparks turned the ball over 21 times in Sundays 70-66 loss to Phoenix, which dropped Los Angeles out of first place and into second behind the Minnesota Lynx.Candace Parker had 25 points and 13 rebounds, but the turnovers were too much to overcome for the Sparks. Los Angeles committed 17 turnovers in a loss to Seattle in its first game back after the monthlong Olympic break.Los Angeles brought in reinforcements this week with the signing of veteran forward Sandrine Gruda.Sandrine adds another layer of experience and leadership to our deep roster, Sparks executive vice president and general manager Penny Toler said in a release announcing the acquisition. She was an integral part of our team in 2014 and we look forward to her being able to come in and have an impact through the final regular-season push and into the playoffs.Wayne Ellington Jersey .ca looks back at the stories and moments that made the year memorable. Kelly Olynyk 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. https://www.heatlockerroom.com/Edrice-Adebayo-City-Edition-Jersey/ . Numbers Game looks into the Canadiens securing the services of Thomas Vanek in a trade with the New York Islanders. The Canadiens Get: LW Thomas Vanek and a conditional fifth-round pick. Jeremiah Martin Jersey . Fellow centre Pavel Datsyuk remains out because of a concussion. Zetterberg has 11 goals and 19 assists for a team-high 30 points, and Datsyuk has a team-high 12 goals and 11 assists. Tyler Herro Heat Jersey .Y. - New York City has been selected to host the NBA All-Star weekend in 2015, with the game played at Madison Square Garden and the slam dunk contest and other skills events held at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.LONDON -- Novak Djokovic is playing for a lot more than just a record-tying sixth title at the ATP finals.The second-ranked Serb is also looking to reclaim the No. 1 ranking.Djokovic won his third straight match at the season-ending tournament on Thursday, beating David Goffin 6-1, 6-2 at the O2 Arena to finish group play undefeated for the fourth time in the past five years.But there are some more matches to play before the 12-time Grand Slam champion can be assured of finishing another season as the top-ranked player.Everything has been going ... in a positive direction. Ive been playing better and better as I proceed in the tournament, Djokovic said.Andy Murray took over the No. 1 ranking from Djokovic this month at the Paris Masters. But if Djokovic does better than Murray this weekend at the ATP finals, he will jump back ahead and finish the season on top for the third straight season and the fifth time in six years.Thats something you wish for, to have everything in your hands, not to depend on other players, Djokovic said. In this particular case, Im glad its like that.Murray, meanwhile, is looking to extend his stay at the top through the offseason for the first time. He plays his third group match on Friday against U.S. Open champion Stan Wawrinka.Djokovic had already qualified for the semifinals after winning his opening two matches at the O2. The second semifinal spot from the group went to Milos Raonic, who beat Dominic Thiem 7-6 (5), 6-3.Raonic, who reached the Wimbledon final this year but lost to Murray, ended up with 13 aces and 31 winners against Goffin.I stepped up when I had an opportunity in the tiebreak. I stepped up at the beginning of the second set and the end of it, Raonic said. Theres a lot definitely to be proud of, playing under that kind of pressure.ddddddddddddRaonic also said he got some tips this week from John McEnroe, who worked with the Canadian during the grass-court season.He shares a lot of wisdom with me, a lot of his opinions. I respect that, Raonic said. It was a big plus to have him there.Goffin was making his debut at the tournament on Thursday, filling in for the injured Gael Monfils.The 11th-ranked Belgian didnt get much chance against Djokovic, earning only one break point -- and that in the final game of the match. Djokovic, meanwhile, converted four of his six break points, two in each set.It was not easy, said Goffin, an alternate who found out on Wednesday he would be facing Djokovic. I didnt feel really well. I didnt feel the rhythm. My groundstrokes, my best weapons, were not there. Its not easy against Novak when its like that.Djokovic is a five-time champion at the eight-man finals. He has won 21 of his last 22 matches at the O2 since 2012, including four straight titles.He also won the title in 2008, when the tournament was in Shanghai, so another victory on Sunday will put him even with Roger Federer as six-time champions.Djokovic opened the match against Goffin with two double-faults, but he didnt do much wrong after that. He ended up winning 83 percent of the points on his first serve, even with four double-faults in the first set.Another match won, but more work ahead.I always try to really take the last drop of energy, whatever is left in my body, to perform as well as I can, Djokovic said, and finish off the season in the best possible way. ' ' '
