NETS' PETROVIC DIES IN CAR ACCIDENT

Drazen Petrovic, a raw European talent who developed into one of the NBA's top shooting guards in two-plus seasons with the New Jersey Nets, died in an automobile accident. He was 28. Police said Petrovic was killed at the scene about 5:20 p.m. German time, about 15 miles north of Ingolstadt, on the highway going to Munich. He was traveling in a Volkswagen Golf with two women and was sitting in the front passenger seat. In heavy rain, the Golf slammed into a trailer truck that had skidded on the slippery road. The 23-year-old driver of the Golf apparently had to brake suddenly and lost control, hitting the rail separating lanes headed in the opposite direction and then hitting the truck. Petrovic, selected to the all-NBA third team, averaged 22.3 points on 52 percent shooting and was one of the league's top 3-point shooters.