TMZ Sports - Page 26

This is AWESOME, baby!!!

Legendary college hoops announcer Dick Vitale is officially cancer free again, he announced Wednesday.

Vitale said in a series of tweets that he got the great news from his doctor following a myriad of tests this week.

"Dick u have gone from being in remission to being CANCER FREE,'" Vitale said of what his doctor told him. "Thank u to ALL of YOU that have sent me 🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽"

Vitale previously beat cancer last year, but he was diagnosed with lymphoma a few months later. The 83-year-old was forced to step away from doing what he loves the most -- calling college basketball games -- while he fought it.

To complicate matters further, Vitale developed a throat condition that affected his vocal cords ... and the Hall of Famer required surgery to fix the issue.

But, Vitale made it clear Thursday the medical battles appear to now all be behind him -- and he's stoked.

"I only wish & pray that EVERYONE in the fight vs that vicious disease can receive the message I received last night from my oncologist DR Rick Brown who is the Director of Oncology at Sarasota Memorial Hospital," Vitale said.

"I will continue to follow the advice of Dr Brown & keep having a positive mental attitude with a strong faith & belief that good things will happen."

Here's proof Ben Simmons is an All-Star when it comes to handling hecklers -- keeping his cool and sternly telling a troll "don't play with me" after annoyingly being called Russell Westbrook while shopping.

The Brooklyn Nets guard was minding his business in the IT'SUGAR candy store, when a random guy walked up on him with excitement, giving him a dap ... but then it turned sideways.

"Oh my God. It's you, bro!" the guy said on the clip. "Russell Westbrook, bro! Russell Westbrook, bro! Oh my God, bro!"

And, that's when the look on Simmons' face turned sour.

"Don't play with me," Simmons said to the troll. "Don't play with me."

But, the guy wouldn't stop -- purposely calling him Westbrook again. Eventually, the guys with Simmons got involved ... walking towards him to get him to kick rocks.

"You can't shoot bro," the guy said to get in one more jab. "Sorry, bro!"

Of course, the fan's comparison is because Ben and Russ have struggled to find their shooting as of late ... and both stars have been the center of criticism by the media and Twitter experts.

If Antonio Brown wants Jerry Jones to call him, it won't be about making him a Dallas Cowboy ... 'cause the legendary owner says he'd rather give his young receivers a chance.

The former Buccaneer spoke about his NFL future with TMZ Sports last week ... and while he has a boomin' rap career, it definitely sounded like he wasn't ready to step away from the game just yet -- saying, "Tell Jerry Jones to call me!"

Despite a pretty banged up receiver room with several injuries to key players, Jones seems uninterested in the idea of bringing in the Super Bowl champ.

"We're good," Jones says of AB's interest. "But, we want to give these young guys a real chance to make this team."

While the Hall of Fame owner is focused on youth, it doesn't mean it can't happen -- either that, or Jones was just being REALLY nice about the situation and just didn't want to give a flat-out "no."

AB probably isn't too concerned -- he currently has a hit song, "Put That S*** On," and a viral dance to go with it ... and as we previously reported, he's about to shoot a music video for it!!

Tragic news ... Luke Knox, a Florida International University linebacker and brother of Bills star Dawson Knox, has died suddenly at the age of 22.

FIU officials and Buffalo head coach Sean McDermott just confirmed the passing ... though a cause of death was not revealed.

"Our hearts go out to Dawson and his family during this time," McDermott just told reporters at Bills training camp. "We're right there with him and supporting him and his family. Just tragic news that I woke up to this morning."

Luke initially began his college career at Ole Miss in 2018 -- playing both linebacker and tight end. He transferred to FIU this offseason -- and had been expected to compete for a starting LB spot this year.

FIU's head coach Mike MacIntyre, who coached Luke at both Ole Miss and FIU, said in a statement Wednesday he was heartbroken over the football player's death.

"Luke’s family is special to me and they will continually be in my heart and my prayers during this difficult time," MacIntyre said. "On behalf of the entire FIU football family, I extend sincere condolences to Luke's family and all who love him."

Dawson was very close with Luke -- the two played together for a season at Ole Miss in 2018 -- and the guys actually shared a very funny moment when Dawson was drafted by Buffalo in 2019.

Luke, celebrating the pick, accidentally punched Dawson in the face -- causing him to bleed on his big night.

"So dang proud of you bro," Luke said in a post to Dawson on the draft night. "Time to go get what's yours!! Love you"

Dawson has yet to publicly comment on the tragedy.

RIP.

Despite Michael Irvin's best efforts to keep the peace -- bar patrons still got involved in a wild fistfight near the Hall of Famer in Texas on Monday ... and the crazy scene was all captured in a video obtained by TMZ Sports.

The altercation happened at around 10 p.m. at Knockout Sports Bar near Dallas -- shortly after Irvin had arrived in town from filming ESPN's "First Take" in New York City earlier in the day.

We're told the former Dallas Cowboys superstar was playing some pool with a friend near the bar area -- when a man wearing a teal T-shirt walked up to try to get a picture with The Playmaker.

Witnesses say the man who was playing with Irvin, though, told the guy to scram -- which set the dude in the teal off.

You can see in the video, the man seemed to have a huge problem with Irvin's friend ... but the ex-wide receiver eventually stepped in to get everyone to calm down.

The footage shows Irvin even hugged the guy in the teal in order to prevent a fracas. But, we're told the guy kept pressing -- and eventually, it led to an all-out brawl.

The man swung on Irvin's friend a few times, appearing to connect with his jaw repeatedly. Bouncers raced in, but the melee seemed to continue.

Finally, some of the combatants left the bar, restoring order to the scene.

It should be noted Irvin was NOT involved in the fight in any way -- he was on the other side of the restaurant having a conversation with a server. We're told he left the venue minutes after the scrap concluded.

We reached out to cops, but they said they were not called to the scene and are not investigating.

A spin down the famous slide at American Family Field on Wednesday ended up in a trip to the emergency room for Dodgers reporter David Vassegh ... who ended up breaking several bones in his body on the ride at the Brewers' ballpark.

The mishap happened just before L.A. took on Milwaukee at the stadium in Wisconsin.

Vassegh was gunnin' to check an item off his bucket list by finally going down Bernie's Chalet in center field -- but things went terribly wrong for the journalist when he came to a stop on the ride.

Video of Vassegh's slide shows he didn't finish feetfirst -- and ended up crashing into the wall with his arm and back exposed. You can see in the footage, Vassegh was in a world of pain immediately.

Turns out, he ended up breaking his arm and fracturing six ribs in the fall. But, somehow, the dude made it back to the field in a cast to get his job done!!

Dodgers announcers Joe Davis and Nomar Garciaparra laughed their asses off at the blunder -- and, to his credit, Vassegh was a good sport about it all on TV.

The guys that Vassegh covers, meanwhile, were impressed with his toughness ... with catcher Austin Barnes saying after their 2-1 win that they got the dub for the injured reporter.

"We all rallied today for you," the Dodger said.

No word if Vassegh will have to miss any further time from here to properly recover -- but get well soon!

Antonio Brown has been making waves with his custom dance for his "Put That Sh*t On" single … and he's using his signature moves honed on the football field to make a big splash.

AB tells TMZ Hip Hop ... he’s currently in the middle of finalizing a couple of deals to fund the "Put That Sh*t On" music vid … which should be an explosive and fashionable affair.

The former All-Pro NFL Star released his "Paradigm" album with the "Put That Sh*t On" single back in April and has been in rap mode since ... even performing the song on the coveted Rolling Loud stage.

AB is lining up the aesthetics for the vid, AB will feature Kanye's Gap displays as well as some unreleased Ye items. There will also be plenty of flashy bling!

Judging from his recent Tom Brady comments, it appears making music is AB's career choice ... at least at the moment.

Cardinals wide receiver Marquise "Hollywood" Brown spoke about his speeding arrest for the first time on Wednesday ... saying it was a mistake he wants to learn from and vowing to be better moving forward.

The 25-year-old -- who was acquired in the offseason from the Baltimore Ravens -- was asked at Wednesday's practice if he had a message for his teammates following his arrest earlier this month, when he was allegedly driving 126 MPH in a 65 zone.

"I want to learn from it," Brown said. "I'm not a guy who gets into trouble, so I want to put in my past and make sure I'm always doing the right things at all times."

Brown says he wasn't late to practice the morning he was speeding, but he did call his decision that day "very disappointing" ... adding that he feels a responsibility to conduct himself in a better manner because the younger generation looks up to him.

"I have a lot of kids that look up to me, so I want to set the right example at all times," Brown said.

As we previously reported, Brown missed his team's training camp practice two weeks ago because he was arrested for criminal speeding.

The Cardinals addressed the arrest at the time, saying "We are aware of the situation regarding Hollywood Brown and have reported it to the NFL office as required. We will comment further as appropriate."

Kliff Kingsbury also addressed the arrest ... saying Brown has "got to be better."

Brown has been nursing a hamstring injury all offseason, so this was his first full week of practice.

Tuesday night will be the last time two Washington fans attend a game at Nationals Park for the foreseeable future ... 'cause the team has reportedly just banned the men for five years after they were accused of heckling Cubs star Willson Contreras.

The incident happened in the top of the 10th inning of the Nats vs. Chicago tilt in D.C. ... when following a sacrifice fly, two guys in Nationals jerseys appeared to say things to Contreras that rattled the Cubs catcher.

Video from the stadium shows the 30-year-old was pissed on the diamond -- and stayed mad for several minutes in the dugout, before the fans were eventually escorted away from the area.

After the game, Contreras declined to get into specifics of what was said to him ... though he did claim the words were "not healthy."

On Wednesday, according to the Chicago Tribune, the Nats decided to boot the fans from Nationals Park for the next five years over it all.

LeBron and Bronny James are one step closer to being teammates in the NBA -- the King just inked a 2-year, $97.1 million deal to stay with the Lakers through the 2023-24 season ... which will make him a free agent when his son becomes eligible for the draft.

The NBA superstar hasn't shied away from his dream of playing alongside his oldest ... he's mentioned it several times and made his intentions crystal clear.

Bron's new deal with the Purple and Gold now gives him the opportunity to opt out and become a free agent the same season Bronny enters the 2024 NBA Draft ... paving the way for him to sign with whatever team picks the current 17-year-old baller.

It would mark the first time both a father and son played in the Association at the same time -- and even though LeBron will be 39 when 2024 rolls around, he's hellbent on making it happen.

Bronny's currently one of the nation's top-ranked players in his class ... and recently wowed all of social media by slamming home a poster dunk in the Club Basketball Euro Tour.

The Cleveland Browns grounds crew rushed to plant new grass right after Machine Gun Kelly's homecoming concert at FirstEnergy Stadium on Saturday ... but it wasn't because the show got too rowdy -- TMZ Sports is told it was all part of the plan.

The Cleveland native played in front of a packed crowd this past Saturday ... giving a bloody performance that even included zip-lining throughout the stadium.

There's just one thing that had people concerned -- Cleveland hosts the Philadelphia Eagles for a preseason game on Sunday ... which means if the field were to have gotten damaged during the concert, the team could be in trouble.

As it turns out, we're told that wasn't the case at all ... because the Browns expected to replace the field after the show no matter what shape it was in.

The team tells us the "Mainstream Sellout" concert marked the end of the stadium's summer concert dates ... so after the rapper/rocker and fans left the place, it was the best opportunity to lay down some new sod for the start of the Browns' 2022 campaign.

There were rumblings the grass would simply not be ready in time for the 1 PM kickoff on the 21 ... but according to our sources, it won't be an issue.

The Patriots and Panthers' joint practice Wednesday looked more like a WWE match ... 'cause the two teams got into a huge brawl -- and the skirmish was so big, a fan was actually injured in the melee.

The fight initially started after Carolina star running back Christian McCaffrey was pissed over a tackle Patriots defensive end Deatrich Wise Jr. put on him during 11-on-11 drills.

The 26-year-old got up after the hit and threw the ball at the Pats D-lineman ... and that's when all hell broke loose.

Video shows a bunch of Panthers players going after Wise and his teammates right near fans who were sitting in the bleachers -- and, at one point, players were thrown into the spectators.

According to Pat's reporter Tom Curran, a woman sitting in the stands was injured after one of the players' helmets hit her foot.

She reportedly refused any medical help, and did get an offer for tickets to a game later this season.

This is the second brawl between the Panthers and Pats this week -- on Tuesday, several players, including Pats' Kendrick Bourne, Kristian Wilkerson, and Panthers' Kenny Robinson, went at it.

Neither Jay-Z or Nas took the stage for Dr. Dre's iconic Super Bowl LVI halftime show, but the legendary producer is crediting them BOTH for saving the event.

On Wednesday, a clip from Dolvett Quince's "Workout the Doubt" podcast surfaced, with an interview with Dr. Dre. The legendary producer admitted he had reservations about looking like a Super Bowl sellout in the aftermath of the Colin Kaepernick protests.

Dre recalls when pondering his decision, he hopped on the phone with Nas, who was able to convince his longtime friend the SB performance would be monumental for the culture.

Together with Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Kendrick Lamar and Mary J. Blige, the halftime show was nominated for 5 Primetime Emmy Awards -- with massive viewership.

Dre says Jay-Z, whose Roc Nation company produced the halftime show with Jesse Collins, also gave him advice on the stage design.

Ironman athlete Brian Kozera -- who was also a police officer and cancer survivor -- has tragically died at 44 years old ... after he was involved in a terrifying bicycle crash while he was training for an upcoming competition.

Kozera -- a 16-year veteran of the Norristown Police Dept. -- passed away after he struck a car on Saturday while he was biking in Caernarvon Township, PA.

According to a crash report, obtained by TMZ Sports, at around 9:48 AM ... Brian ran a stop sign and hit the passenger side of a pickup.

Kozera, according to the docs, was thrown from his bike and ended up being caught in the car's rear wheel. Cops say he was transported to a nearby hospital, but died from the injuries he suffered in the accident.

Kozera had been training for the Ironman World Championships in Hawaii in October 2022 ... according to a statement from the Norristown Fraternal Order Of Police Lodge 31.

In 2014, Kozera was diagnosed with a rare cancer called Lymphocyte-depleted Hodgkin’s lymphoma. He later beat it in 2015 -- and said his battle with the disease gave him the push to become an Ironman athlete.

Kozera was slated to compete in three more events leading up to the competition in Hawaii ... before his untimely death, according to his blog.

Brian is survived by his wife and three young daughters.

Dean Karnazes -- a famous ultramarathon athlete -- was terrifyingly attacked by a coyote during a run on a California trail this month ... and the incident was so bad, it left him with a bloody face.

The 59-year-old went into detail about the encounter in an IG video ... saying he was running in Marin Headlands when a coyote ambushed him.

"I just had something rather terrifying happen," Karnazes said. "I'm out on a 150-mile trail run and I got attacked by a coyote."

"That's a first. It knocked me over and thankfully I'm running with poles so I whacked it and it ran away."

But, Karnazes did suffer injuries ... you can see in his selfie video he had blood all over his mouth, chin and shirt.

"Not sure what I’m gonna do," he said in the clip. "I guess I gotta keep going or else it'll probably come back for me."

After the experience, Karnazes -- who has won the Badwater Ultramarathon and Vermont Trail 10 Mile Endurance Run -- advised people to stop feeding coyotes on the trail, with the hopes it'll keep the wild animals further away from runners.

"If you see someone feeding a coyote, please say something," Karnazes said.

"The local Rangers are doing the best they can, but we trail runners are out in these areas more than anyone. Thank you. It's best for everyone, coyotes included. #letwildlifebewild"

FYI, this ain't the first time Karnazes has been attacked by a wild animal -- he also said on his social media page that he's had a scary run-in with a shark in the past as well.

"I've been attacked by a shark, and now a coyote," he said. "Both incidents were terrifying."

Karnazes has competed in several running and swimming events throughout his career -- in fact, he swam across the San Francisco Bay and ran a marathon in every state in the U.S. for 50 consecutive days in 2006.

He's also a columnist for Men's Health and the author of "Ultramarathon Man: Confessions of an All-Night Runner."

Joe Rogan got all fired up while talking about abortion with a conservative media personality -- invoking his teenage daughter to make a point ... which sorta had the guy stumped.

Seth Dillon -- who runs The Babylon Bee, a right-leaning satire site -- got into with Joe Tuesday on the latest episode of the 'JRE' ... with its host laying out a very personal hypothetical as they started discussing the overturning of Roe v. Wade and its ramifications.

Watch ... Joe asks about the possibility of a young girl being raped, and inserts his own 14-year-old, Lola, as the would-be victim. He asks the question ... you really think it's okay for her to be forced to carry that baby to term???

Dillon says yes, telling Joe he doesn't think "two wrongs make a right" -- the first wrong being the rape, and the second being the "killing" of a person.

JR continues to press him, though, not accepting his answer -- it almost sounds like he can't believe Dillon actually embraces that ... but the dude stands firm, insisting that there's simply no excuse in his eyes to warrant an abortion. Even the rape of a young girl.

Joe also drills down on when exactly Dillon considers a human life has actually formed, getting into weeks, days, and even seconds after conception. SD doesn't have a clear answer, other than to say ... he believes as soon as a sperm and egg merge, it's alive.