MINORITY HIRING UP IN NBA.(SPORTS)

Byline: FRED BAYLES Associated Press

Minority hiring of coaches and front-office personnel in professional sports has improved only slightly in the last year, with the NBA showing the most improvement and baseball the least.

"On the field we're looking at the most integrated workplace in this country, but off the field, except for the NBA, we see what is more representative in America," said Richard Lapchick, whose Center for the Study of Sport in Society at Northeastern University issued its fourth annual "racial report card" Thursday.

The report, drawn from team rosters of personnel on and off the field, gave the NBA an overall A and praise …