CLEVELAND -- Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert felt he made a big mistake when he fired Mike Brown as his coach in 2010. That didnt stop him from doing it again. Browns second shot with the Cavs ended Monday after one just one season as Gilbert dismissed the only Cleveland coach who has ever made it to the NBA finals. Brown had been re-hired last April by Gilbert, who regretted dismissing him four years earlier. While the Cavs record improved and they made strides defensively under Brown this season, the club missed the playoffs again and Gilbert decided it was time to make another change. "This is a very tough business," Gilbert said in a statement. "It pains all of us here that we needed to make the difficult decision of releasing Mike Brown. Mike worked hard over this last season to move our team in the right direction. Although, there was some progress from our finish over the few prior seasons, we believe we need to head in a different direction. We wish Mike and his family nothing but the best." In addition to firing Brown, Gilbert announced hes retaining David Griffin as the clubs full-time general manager. Griffin had been the interim GM since Feb. 6, when Gilbert fired Chris Grant one day after the Cavs lost to a Los Angeles Lakers team which finished the game with just five eligible players. Gilbert said Griffin would lead the search for Browns successor. Its not known what input Griffin had in Browns firing. Griffin has ties to former Phoenix executive Steve Kerr, who is one of New York president Phil Jacksons top choices to take over the Knicks. Griffin also has worked with Mike DAntoni and Alvin Gentry. Other coaches who could get consideration for the Cavs opening include Mark Jackson and George Karl. Brown had four years remaining on his $20 million contract. Brown, who was fired last year by the Lakers five games into his second season, could not be reached for comment. Brown went 272-138 in his first stint with Cleveland. Led by superstar LeBron James, the Cavs made the finals for the first time in 2007 and were title contenders throughout Browns tenure. However, they didnt advance past the Eastern Conference semifinals four years ago and Brown was let go. At the time, it appeared Gilbert was making the move -- and hiring Byron Scott as coach -- to appease James and hopefully keep him in Cleveland. James, though, decided to leave as a free agent for Miami, where he is chasing his straight third NBA title with the Heat. "Its just a tough business. I mean, thats all it is. Its a tough business and, you know, Mike Brown got the short end of a tough business," James said. Gilbert brought back Brown to fix Clevelands defence, and the Cavs improved, moving from last in the league in field-goal percentage to 12th. But the offence never flowed like it should and the Cavs didnt make a late playoff push despite a favourable schedule down the stretch. Clevelands players didnt care for Browns defence-first philosophy and there seemed to be a disconnect between the Cavs and the coaching staff. Brown seemed resigned to his fate following the season finale, when he said he would support whatever decision Gilbert made. "Its his team," Brown said. Cleveland went 17-16 under Griffin, who worked as Grants assistant before being promoted. Gilbert said he interviewed several other candidates before deciding to remove the "interim" from Griffins title. "We chose David as our GM because we believe he is the best person to lead our franchise at this critical time and into the future," Gilbert said. "David brings over two decades of experience. He knows the ins and outs of this league as well as anyone and is also an outstanding talent evaluator." The Cavaliers will hold a news conference on Tuesday at the teams facility in Independence. Gilbert had high praise for Griffin, who previously worked in Phoenixs front office before coming to Cleveland. "He is a general manager who is aligned with our culture and philosophy which is the foundation of how we do business," Gilbert said. "David is not only passionate about his own job but also cares deeply about the success of everyone around him. His presence alone creates an infectious positive environment with players, coaches, front office people and even our fan base. We already saw some progress in the short time David led our basketball side in the latter part of this past season. Clearly, we have substantial work ahead of us and I am confident that Griff will play an essential part of the growth and success of our organization." While the Cavs showed signs of progress with Brown, he was unable to get one of the leagues youngest teams to play consistently. His replacement will have a similar challenge, assuming Griffin doesnt do a complete overhaul to Clevelands roster. The Cavs are entering a critical summer. Theyll once again be in the draft lottery and the club is expected to be active in free agency. The team must also decide whether to offer Irving a maximum contract extension in July. Felipe Vazquez Jersey . The Montreal Canadiens goaltender has won three of his four games since returning from a lower-body injury that kept him out from the end of the Olympic break until March 15. Chris Archer Jersey .3 seconds remaining, and No. 7 North Carolina held off a resilient No. 25 Virginia team, 54-51, on Saturday. John Henson contributed a double-double with 15 points to go with 11 rebounds for the Tar Heels (25-4, 12-2 ACC), who have won five straight and 10 of 11. http://www.pittsburghpiratesprostore.us/Customized/ . Smith, an eighth overall pick, had two goals in only 276 minutes of playing time over 16 appearances last season. The left side midfielder played only 43 minutes in three games this season. Lonnie Chisenhall Pirates Jersey . And by all indications, the team is expected to select phenom Connor McDavid with their selection. The Buffalo Sabres, who were knocked down to the second overall pick after finishing with the worst regular season record, are expected to take the other generational player in Jack Eichel. Barry Bonds Pirates Jersey . - A mixed martial arts fighter who changed his name to War Machine was ordered Friday to stand trial in Nevada state court on 34 felony charges including attempted murder, sexual assault and kidnapping that could get him life in prison for allegedly attacking his porn star ex-girlfriend and her friend.BARCELONA, Spain -- Cristiano Ronaldo struck again in Real Madrids 5-0 rout at Almeria before going off injured, while Barcelona didnt miss sidelined star Lionel Messi as it eased past 10-man Granada 4-0 to retain the Spanish league lead on Saturday. Not to be outdone, Atletico Madrid bettered its title rivals by demolishing 10-man Getafe 7-0 with Diego Costa returning from injury to score with a brilliant bicycle kick. "It was an almost perfect night," Atletico coach Diego Simeone said. Barcelona leads Atletico by three points with Madrid trailing the defending champions by six points. Mexico forward Carlos Vela found the net four times to rally Real Sociedad back from a two-goal deficit for a 4-3 victory against 10-man Celta Vigo to round out a free-scoring Saturday featuring 23 goals. Fresh from scoring four to lead Portugal past Sweden in their World Cup qualifying playoffs, Ronaldo extended his scoring run to eight straight games for club and country by grabbing Madrids third-minute opener. Ronaldo walked off the pitch in the 52nd with a suspected hamstring injury before Karim Benzema, Gareth Bale, Isco Alarcon and Alvaro Morata added goals. "It was for precaution," Ronaldo said. "Its nothing special. I was kicked in the first half and had the muscle a little stiff." Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti said Ronaldo had "a problem with his hamstring" and he would undergo more tests on Sunday. Andres Iniesta and Cesc Fabregas earned and converted penalties to help injury-battered Barcelona overcome the absence of Messi and four more first-choice players. "Those of us who are left have to take care of ourselves," Iniesta said. "When we reach April or May it will be a question of having everyone doing their part." Ronaldo and Messi are their teams undisputed leaders and the two top scorers in the sport, but their teammates showed they have more than enough attacking talent to get by without them, especially against the lesser league sides, by combining for eight goals without the scoring aces. Ronaldo is vying to end Messis unprecedented run of four straight Ballon dOr awards. WWhile Messi wont be back from a left hamstring tear until January, Ronaldo, if fit, will have one more chance to impress voters on Wednesday when Madrid hosts Galatasaray in the Champions League before voting for the 2013 award closes on Friday.dddddddddddd Ronaldo had already directed two shots on target when he ran forward to toe Iscos bouncing cross inside the far post with his outstretched left boot for his league-leading 17th goal in 14 rounds. The goal tied Ronaldo with former striker Hugo Sanchez as the Madrids fourth all-time leading scorer in league play with 164 goals. Ronaldo did it in 149 games, while Sanchez needed 207. Raul Gonzalez holds the record with 228 goals. With Almeria showing some fight, Ronaldo left the match and went straight to the changing room. Benzema curled in a pass from Ronaldos replacement, Jese Rodriguez, in the 61st, Bale pounced on a defensive gaffe to seal the result in the 72nd, and Isco placed a long-range strike inside the post in the 75th. Morata chipped the goalkeeper six minutes later. Messi paraded his record third Golden Boot for most goals in Europes domestic leagues last season before taking his seat at Camp Nou. Without Messi, Xavi Hernandez, Dani Alves, Jordi Alba, and goalkeeper Victor Valdes, Barcelona still dominated a Granada side that had lost only once away this season, to remain unbeaten with a league record of 13 wins and a draw. "Barcelona was missing players? I didnt realize it," Granada coach Luis Alcaraz said. Granada, 2-0 behind, played a man down from the 66th after Manuel Iturra received his second booking. Vela started Sociedads comeback against Celta from 3-1 down by heading in a free kick in the 61st, and Celta defender Andreu Fontas was dismissed for his second yellow card four minutes later. Vela levelled at 3-3 in the 78th and held off his marker to collect Antoine Griezmanns lobbed pass to roll in the dramatic winner in the 81st. "You work hard each game to help as much as you can and today was a great day for me," Vela said. "And, fortunately, my goals got us the win, because if not it would have been bittersweet." ' ' '