Coronavirus

Nic Naitanui -- Aussie Rules football's biggest star -- successfully completed 5 weeks in a bubble environment Down Under ... but cautions the mental health side of things is a real concern for athletes.

FYI, the Australian Football League (AFL) is currently running a hub system -- where teams are quarantined in separate bubble environments throughout the country.

Entry into each bubble requires 2 weeks of quarantine followed by strict testing -- and then it's off to a secure site, which in Nic's case was a Top Flight hotel.

The West Coast Eagles star admits it was "pretty tough" to adjust at first -- but he got into a routine and ultimately played really well on the field.

Now, Nic says sports leagues from all over the world have been contacting the AFL and the individual teams for advice on how to successfully pull off a bubble ... and he's got some solid tips.

The biggest warning, per Nic, is mental health for the players.

"The mental health side of things is massive because you are deprived of that social interaction with your family and friends and what not."

"I can tell why people probably do sneak out of the bubble. I see with the NBA boys because they're used to having that freedom and livelihood to do what they want and now you're being told -- its almost like a prison, albeit, a 5 star prison!"

The big question for us ... will the NFL follow the AFL's lead before time runs out?

The NBA, like the AFL, is having tremendous success so far in their bubble.

No bubble? No problem!

Steph Curry found a silver lining with his Golden State Warriors not qualifying for the NBA Bubble ... he got to spend his anniversary with his wife!

Steph and Ayesha celebrated 9 years of marriage on Thursday by spending a day at the beach -- climbing rocks, kissing and taking pics!

"Nine years in. And what they say? Forever to go! I love you," Steph said in a love note to Ayesha.

"Thank you for always making me better, for pushing me, for keeping it real with me, for bringing light and energy to every room you walk in, for showing our kids what it means to be passionate and caring and loving, for always being my eyes and ears, Traveling with me on every high and every low, and most importantly....for always being unapologetically you!"

Steph jokingly tagged location of the pics as, "My Own Bubble."

Ayesha and Steph met in a church youth group in Charlotte when they were teenagers and the rest is history.

They tied the knot in 2011 and have 3 kids together.

As for basketball ... Steph doesn't seem bitter about not being in the bubble with the league's other top stars.

KC Chiefs running back Damien Williams -- who scored TWO 4th-quarter TDs in the Super Bowl -- is opting OUT of the 2020 NFL season.

"Damien Williams informed the club of his decision to opt out of the 2020 season," Chiefs GM Brett Veach announced Wednesday.

The 28-year-old has not yet issued a statement explaining his decision -- but this is a big one.

Williams was a stud for the Chiefs in 2019 -- but REALLY broke out during the playoffs.

During Super Bowl LIV, he rushed for 104 yards and a TD against the SF 49ers -- and also caught 4 passes for 29 yards and a TD!

The receiving TD with 1:12 left in the game basically sealed the victory for KC.

Some people feel he could have been named Super Bowl MVP.

Williams was reportedly set to make $1.85 million in 2020 -- the final year of his contract.

The good news for the Chiefs ... they drafted a BEAST in the 1st round of the 2020 NFL Draft -- scooping up LSU's Clyde Edwards-Helaire.

Not a terrible fall back plan.

Other RBs on the roster include Darwin Thompson and Darrell Williams.

Story developing ...

COVID has infiltrated Formula One -- with driver Sergio Perez testing positive for the coronavirus and dropping out of the British Grand Prix.

The 30-year-old Mexican driver was in England getting ready for Sunday's race when his first COVID test on Thursday came back inconclusive.

A second test later confirmed he has coronavirus.

Now, Perez is quarantining himself in hopes of limiting exposure to other drivers or crew members.

"Perez has entered self-quarantine in accordance with the instructions of the relevant public health authorities, and will continue to follow the procedure mandated by those authorities," F1 said in a statement.

The racing org. also says a "full track and trace initiative" has been launched to see if anyone may have been exposed.

"All close contacts [to Perez] have been quarantined."

So far, the event will continue as planned ... as long as there's no Miami Marlins-style outbreak.

As for Perez, F1 says he's "physically well and in good spirits."

Perez is the first F1 driver to test positive for COVID.

Of course, the pandemic has hit other sports hard over the past few months -- everything from baseball to soccer to MMA.

Bryan Cranston's one of the millions who've contracted the coronavirus, but he says he was lucky to have mild symptoms ... and now he's doing his part to help others.

The "Breaking Bad" star just shared a video of himself going through the process of donating plasma, which contains COVID-19 antibodies and can hopefully be of good medical and scientific use in the future.

Along with the vid, Bryan revealed he tested positive for the virus pretty early on and had some of the common mild symptoms -- headache, tightness in his chest and loss of taste and smell. He points out it affects everyone differently, though, and tragically ... has now resulted in more than 150,000 deaths in the U.S.

So, the actor's encouraging people to remain patient and vigilant -- and keep following the rules -- in order to prevail through this pandemic.

And, for other "lucky ones" out there like him, he's also providing a pretty great tutorial on how to contribute in the battle against COVID-19.

The Philadelphia Phillies have brought all team activities to a screeching halt ... after 2 members of the organization tested positive for the coronavirus.

Remember, the Miami Marlins announced a serious COVID-19 outbreak after playing a series in Philly over the weekend ... with at least 19 reported cases as of Thursday morning.

The problem -- some Marlins players reportedly found out they tested positive for COVID prior to Sunday's game against the Phillies ... but the rest of the team decided to play anyway.

Now, the Phillies are reporting 2 members of the team -- zero players -- have tested positive ... and are taking no chances at letting things get worse.

The team says it's shut down all team activities "until further notice" ... which also leaves the Phillies' weekend series against the Toronto Blue Jays up in the air.

The Phillies' series against the Yankees was postponed due to the COVID outbreak ... but MLB commish Rob Manfred says the outbreak is "no nightmare."

Herman Cain, once a GOP Presidential hopeful, has died from COVID-19 ... Cain contracted the coronavirus after attending Trump's Tulsa rally.

The businessman and politician's death was announced Thursday on his website. A statement read, "Herman Cain -- our boss, our friend, like a father to so many of us -- has passed away."

Cain fell ill shortly after attending President Trump's rally in Tulsa on June 20 -- he was hospitalized for about a month ... getting oxygen treatments.

Cain posed for a photo, without a mask, at the rally with a caption that read, "Here’s just a few of the #BlackVoicesForTrump at tonight’s rally! Having a fantastic time!"

Remember, at the time of the rally, Oklahoma was in grips of a spike in coronavirus cases. Afterward, reports surfaced that the Trump campaign asked Tulsa venue organizers to remove social distancing signs.

Trump later canceled an Alabama rally out of fear of a COVID-19 outbreak.

Cain's Twitter account had kept his followers up-to-date on his condition, and a post on Monday -- just 3 days ago -- read, "doctors say his other organs and systems are strong" and that "re-strengthening the lungs is a long and slow process, and the doctors want to be thorough about it." The post added, "He really is getting better, which means it is working."

Cain, who Trump once considered to run the Federal Reserve, is one of the highest-profile public victims of the coronavirus.

He was 74.

LeBron James will be repping Kobe Bryant when the NBA season restarts Thursday night ... wearing a #24 finger sleeve on his left hand.

Bron has been honoring Kobe with the sleeve since Mamba passed away back in January ... but wanted his fans to know he's keeping the tribute alive in the NBA Bubble in Orlando.

"Stucc in the Grind! The Marathon Continues tonight and forever. Let’s Get It," James posted on IG with a photo of the finger sleeve.

The lyrics are a tribute to another late L.A. legend, Nipsey Hussle.

The Lakers will rebegin their season Thursday night against the L.A. Clippers -- both teams are favorites to win the NBA title.

Kobe and his daughter Gianna died on January 26th in a helicopter crash in Calabasas.

LeBron -- and really most of the NBA -- was devastated by the loss. With several high profile players getting tattoo tributes to honor the legend.

In fact, Bron and his Lakers teammate Anthony Davis got similar Kobe Bryant tattoos on their legs in the weeks following Bryant's death.

The Lakers -- and every other team in the bubble -- will play 8 "regular season" games before the playoffs begin.

Dog piles OUT ... air fives and no-touching circles IN?!?

The S.F. Giants got SUPER creative with their celebration of Mike Yastrzemski's walk-off home run Wednesday ... ditching home plate mobs for a socially distanced party!!!

The scene was hilarious ... in the bottom of the 9th, tied at 6-6 with the Padres, Carl Yastrzemski's grandson hit a moonshot to right that gave the Giants their 3rd win of the season.

Under normal circumstances ... Yaz would've been downright tackled once he finished rounding the bases -- but in a pandemic?? IT WAS A SOCIAL DISTANCE FIESTA, BABY!!

Check out the clip ... the Giants stormed home plate -- but then did nothing more than circle around Yastrzemski and bounce up and down!!

Ash Barty -- the #1 ranked female tennis player in the world -- is opting out of the U.S. Open ... saying it's just too risky to play.

The 24-year-old Australian says she loves the annual tournament -- set to begin in New York on August 31 -- but she doesn't feel comfortable bringing her team into a danger zone while the pandemic is still raging in the U.S.

"My team and I have decided that we won't be travelling to the ... Western & Southern Open and the U.S. Open this year," Barty said.

"I love both events so this was a difficult decision, but there are still significant risks involved due to COVID-19 and I don't feel comfortable putting my team and I in that position."

She added, "I wish the USTA all the best for the tournaments and I look forward to being back in the U.S. next year."

Australia has closed its international borders -- which would make overseas travel difficult for Barty anyway.

Dr. Anthony Fauci's finally talking about that DISASTER of a first pitch at the Washington Nationals game ... and doc's got EXCUSES!

Sore arm. Poor training. Misjudging the distance.

COME ON FAUCI!!!

The Doc opened up about the debacle on the ESPN Daily podcast -- admitting he hadn't thrown a baseball in decades and wasn't properly prepared for the honor.

"I had been practicing for 2 days before at a walk down that I thought was 60 feet, but it was really probably 45 feet," Fauci said.

"I was throwing and throwing and throwing and I got it right but only it was at 45 feet!"

"And I kind of hurt my arm because I haven’t thrown a baseball literally in decades."

Fauci continued ... "So, as I was getting ready to go out on the mound, my arm was killing me -- but I said hell, I could suck it up and just throw it the way I had been practicing."

But, when Fauci got to the mound, the doc says he panicked -- "I said, 'Oh my god, Sean Doolittle looked like he was 200 feet away!"

Fauci says he changed his throwing motion to try and overcompensate for the distance and soreness ... but it backfired.

"I wound up and threw it like a bullet, only it just went way off to the left."

"So it was my bad, all the way."

Dana Stubblefield says he plans to fight his rape conviction -- claiming the COVID pandemic ruined his shot at a fair trial and now he plans to appeal.

As we previously reported, the ex-NFL player was found guilty of rape by force, oral copulation by force and false imprisonment stemming from a 2015 incident at his Northern California home.

Officials say Stubblefield had lured the victim to his home under the guise of interviewing for a babysitting job -- and then sexually assaulted her.

The victim -- 31-years-old at the time -- has developmental disabilities, according to prosecutors.

Stubblefield has denied the allegations for years -- and despite the conviction, his attorney Allen Sawyer tells TMZ Sports the former football star will continue to fight.

"He's going to fight to clear his name. He's innocent. He believes in the judicial system," Sawyer says.

"He's not happy where this is right now but he's going to keep fighting."

Currently, Stubblefield is facing 15 years to life in prison. He's due back in court for sentencing later this year.

But, Stubblefield's lawyer tells us the trial was "littered with errors" -- and he expects to win his appeal.

First, Sawyer says the COVID pandemic led to MONTHS of delays -- causing the trial to last nearly 9 months from start to finish.

"Once they halted the jury trial for months, we asked for a mistrial because how the jury supposed to remember evidence from a witness from 7, 8 months ago when they've had a 2 month break and other breaks?"

Sawyer explains ... "They started the trial and then the pandemic hit. We already had a jury, the government got to present a lot of evidence and then they halted the trial for 2 months because of the pandemic."

When the trial restarted, Sawyer says jurors were anxious and distracted by possible COVID exposures which led to more delays.

"Then they started letting witnesses testify remotely, we weren't allowed to sit next to our client. We continually asked for a mistrial because it wasn't a fair environment because of the COVID circumstances."

But, Stubblefield's requests for a mistrial were denied and he was ultimately convicted.

Sawyer says there were several other MAJOR flaws with the way the trial was conducted -- but he'll spell out those gripes in his appeal papers.