TMZ Sports - Page 20

Jonathan Owens had full control of Simone Biles' flames on Halloween ... grabbing a handful of his future wife in some steamy fireman-costumed pics!!

The Olympic gold medalist shared the hot photos on Sunday ... showing the Houston Texans safety getting a little handsy for the October holiday.

Biles was rockin' a 2-piece 'fit with flames all over it ... while Owens -- wearing fireman overalls and an FD cap -- made sure the blaze didn't get too out of control.

Biles asked her 6 million IG followers to give the sexy post a caption ... and one fan obliged, writing, "I don't think he wants to put that fire out. He just wants to tame it. 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥"

Another person said, "Costumes 🔥. Baby Im on fire, come water me down. 😍" while someone else called Owens the "luckiest firefighter ever."

This is the couple's first Halloween together as future husband and wife ... Owens just proposed to the gymnast with a 3-carat oval diamond ring in February after two years of dating.

Ex-NBA player Eric Bledsoe was in great spirits at the Clippers game on Sunday ... just days after he was arrested for allegedly slapping his girlfriend.

32-year-old Bledsoe -- who played for the Clips from 2010-13 and the 2021-22 season -- was smiling from ear to ear as he sat courtside at Crypto.com Arena to check out his old team against the New Orleans Pelicans.

It wasn't a great outing for the Clippers -- they lost 112-91.

TMZ Sports broke the story -- Bledsoe was arrested in Lost Hills, CA Wednesday night after his girlfriend called cops and claimed she was slapped.

The arrest came just hours after it was reported Bledsoe was set to sign with the Shanghai Sharks in the Chinese Basketball Association.

As we previously reported, the girlfriend posted about the altercation on Instagram ... calling Bledsoe a "monster."

The post was deleted shortly after.

It's unclear whether the arrest will have an impact on Bledsoe's future -- the Sharks have yet to comment on the situation.

Khloe Kardashian sure seems enraged at her ex, Tristan Thompson, but she's not letting it get in the way of co-parenting, because he was front and center at their Halloween shindig.

The Kardashians held a little get-together this weekend for the kids, and the ex-couple showed up on North West's TikTok compilation ... appearing in the same shot at one point, but not interacting much.

Khloe was in a full-body catsuit, while Tristan was shielded in an Iron Man mask. Their daughter, True, was dressed up as the Disney character Owlette ... and the newest addition to their family, the baby boy, was in a Tigger costume. True held her baby bro but his face wasn't visible.

Mama bear wrote ... "Owlette and Tigger aka True and Baby Brother. (Shhhhh…. But I can't wait for Halloween to be over)."

Nothing too crazy here ... it's just Khloe and Tristan co-parenting as they've done in the past. Of course, his most recent cheating scandal -- resulting in the birth of a baby with Maralee Nichols -- has led some to believe he's iced out of the picture. That's clearly not the case.

Lil Wayne showered a Make-A-Wish kid with love during his own Lil Weezyana Fest ... capping off a weekend of generosity for the New Orleans-based bash.

The Young Money CEO found time to connect with Donavon Fitzpatrick .. a child in the Make-A-Wish program during the 6th edition of the festival.

Donavon suffers from hypoplastic left heart syndrome ... a condition that affects blood flow and we're told is a HUGE Lil Wayne fan back home in Texas.

Wayne brought Donovan onstage during a performance of his classic song "Go DJ"  ... and they later met him backstage where Wayne surprised Donovan with a ton of sports memorabilia.

Wayne learned Donovan was a diehard fan of the L.A. Lakers and Kansas City Chiefs, so he dropped off plenty of goodies.

Lil Weezyana Fest featured several memorable moments over the weekend, including a surprise appearance from Drake ... who was playfully introduced as a "foreigner" to the NOLA audience.

Rick Ross, Quavo and Takeoff, Cam'ron, Rob49 and several other star performers also graced throughout the evening but that wasn't the extent of Weezy's generosity.

He also surprised his old stomping grounds McMain High School with a long-overdue class reunion after Covid-19 delayed the class of 2000 gathering.

Zac Efron is blowing people away with his transformation in the upcoming film, "The Iron Claw" ... and he's got a seal of approval from a very important person -- Kevin Von Erich, the wrestling legend Zac's portraying.

Kevin tells TMZ ... not only does Zac's depiction get a big thumbs up ... it sounds like his daughters are on board with the casting choice, too.

As for Zac's physique, Kevin says that's no easy task to pull off -- telling us it was pretty time-consuming to stay in shape like that back in his prime ... giving props to the actor for lookin' that good.

FYI -- the upcoming film is all about the Von Erich legacy ... showcasing the family of wrestlers breaking into the game, starting way back in the '60s. Alongside Zac, Jeremy Allen White will be playing Kevin's brother, Kerry.

Kevin has had little to no involvement with the film, aside from talking to the director, Sean Durkin, a few times. He hasn't spoken to Zac about the role.

Patriots owner Robert Kraft sponsored an ad Sunday ... asking people watching NFL games to "stand up to Jewish hate" in the wake of Kanye West's antisemitic comments.

The Foundation to Combat Antisemitism (FCAS) released the 30-second ad during the first quarter of the Patriots-Jets game ... "calling attention to the concerning rise of antisemitism."

The org. -- which Kraft founded intending to forge positive relationships with Jews and non-Jews -- expressed in the commercial that they need more people to condemn antisemitism.

"With the recent rise in conversations about antisemitism on social media, FCAS launched #StandUpToJewishHate, encouraging Jews and non-Jews alike to speak out against hatred and stand with the Jewish community," the org.'s website read.

The timing of Kraft's ad was strategic ... and comes as Kanye continues to face backlash over the antisemitic remarks he's repeatedly made in interviews.

Kanye has seen several high-profile companies part ways with him -- such as Adidas and Balenciaga. Pro athletes Aaron Donald and Jaylen Brown also left his sports agency.

Ye isn't the only celeb who's found himself in hot water -- over the weekend, Kyrie Irving was involved in a heated spat with a reporter about a controversial movie he shared on Twitter.

Irving tweeted a link to a film on Amazon called ... "Hebrews to Negroes: Wake Up Black America," which claims to expose who the real "chosen people of God" are.

Nets owner Joe Tsai publicly criticized the Nets' superstar point guard ... and condemned him for promoting the movie on his platform.

The Miz says the Cleveland Cavaliers are AWEEEEEESOME -- telling TMZ Sports he thinks his hometown team is going to make it all the way to the NBA Finals this season!!

We spoke with the WWE Superstar out at LAX this week about his Cleveland sports teams ... and while his Browns are struggling, he says there's hope with the Wine & Gold.

"We're going to the NBA Finals," Miz tells us. "They got a young squad, and they got some good superstars. They look better than the Lakers."

The Cavs have been playing well so far this season -- they already have more wins than the Browns -- and have been led by newly acquired star Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen ... even with Darius Garland missing games with an eye injury.

Miz is clearly a fan of the Cavs' blockbuster trade ... saying, "Spida is going to be amazing."

"He is the star," Miz adds. "And we welcomed him with open arms, 'cause we didn't think we could get another star. It's Cleveland. It's not like an L.A. or NY, or Miami market."

What's even more surprising -- Miz isn't exactly worried about whether LeBron James ever comes back home ... saying he believes the current Cavs squad can win it all without the King.

Jake Paul just went toe-to-toe with former UFC champion Anderson Silva -- and WON -- coming away with his hand raised in an incredibly impressive bout on Saturday.

The Problem Child and Spider beat each other up for eight rounds ... but neither fighter could finish with a knockout.

Jake, however, had the lone knockdown of the fight in the 8th round ... after a short right to Silva's head.

Paul got the dub via unanimous decision in Phoenix ... and now the former YouTuber-turned-superstar says he wants to go up against Canelo Alvarez or Nate Diaz.

Jake grabbed the mic after the win ... saying Diaz is a b*tch and he'd love to add him to his list of victims.

He also went after Canelo ... saying he wants a piece of the boxing champ, too.

But when it came to Silva, the two showed nothing but respect for each other after the fight ... with Jake explaining how much Anderson has meant to him over the years.

Jake gave a message to the haters, too ... saying people will always find a reason to doubt him.

The fight was insanely close -- but ultimately, Jake landed more significant punches.

Jake Paul -- 6-0.

Jimmy Uso clearly believes another Johnson is going to be dominating in WWE rings for a long, long time ... telling TMZ Sports after seeing The Rock's daughter make her debut this week, he's convinced she's going to be a STAR.

Simone Johnson made her first-ever mark in a WWE ring on Tuesday ... revealing herself as "Ava Raine" on NXT and cutting a promo that had the crowd in attendance going wild.

Uso told us out at LAX this week that he was blown away by the 21-year-old's chops ... saying he thinks it won't be long before she's a household name just like Dad.

"The sky is the limit," Jimmy said. "She's got the workhorse in her like we all do. It runs deep in the blood, and I'm excited for her future."

"I can't wait to see where this takes her."

Uso says if/when she gets called up from NXT to the main roster ... he'll have no issues taking her under his wing -- because, after all, they are basically family.

"Anyway the family can get it, I'm all for it," said Jimmy, who wrestles in a group called "The Bloodline" with his brother, Jey, and WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns, who is Dwayne Johnson's cousin. "I'm ready to see what she can do. I'm ready for her to pop off and represent the bloodline."

Kamaru Usman is planning to fight Leon Edwards in early 2023 -- in the Brit's home country -- but the Nigerian Nightmare ain't concerned about going into enemy territory ... 'cause he says the crowd will actually be on his side.

"I would love to go to England and do this in England," Usman told Babcock when they sat down for the "TMZ Sports" TV show (airs weeknights on FS1), adding, "I gotta lot of fans in England, a lot of my Africans, a lot of my Jamaican fans in England so I think it only makes sense."

Lots of fans in England ... as in, the crowd will be split 50/50, we asked.

"No, I think I have more fans in there than he would but it is what it is, going to the UK, doesn't matter. They don't help you fight. You gotta fight me. You gotta fight the Nigerian Nightmare when you're in there so that doesn't really make a difference for me," 35-year-old Usman said.

Of course, Kamaru lost his title to 31-year-old Edwards at UFC 278 in August. Usman was cruising, on his way to a relatively painless title defense ... that's until Rocky landed a perfectly placed head kick that turned the lights off for the champ.

Prior to the loss, Usman won 19 fights in a row ... many against the UFC's best, including Colby Covington (twice), Jorge Masvidal (twice), and many others. He also previously beat Edwards in late 2015.

After the fight, the internet did what the internet does ... and there were memes galore. Usman handled the loss graciously.

"I started wrestling in high school and I lost a lot until I started winning. Then I went to college wrestling and then I lost until I did win and then I started fighting, then I lost and started winning," Kamaru says, making the point ... everyone loses. It's how you bounce back.

And, after over 20 minutes of fighting this summer, Usman says both he and Edwards know who's the superior fighter.

Halloween will come a day early for Indianapolis Colts corner Isaiah Rodgers ... 'cause the NFL player copped some spooky mummy cleats for Sunday's game -- that light up!!!

TMZ Sports has learned ... the Indy defensive back hit up his go-to guy Rodney Jackson recently to get some spikes made for the Colts' day-before-Halloween game against the Washington Commanders.

Jackson tells us he actually came up with the idea to make Rodgers' cleats look like a corpse ... and then he decided to add on a bonus -- some creepy green lights!

The final product came out amazing ... the shoes are wrapped in fabric to make them look like a body is inside. Rodgers' jersey number is painted on the side ... and there's also a frightening green face featured on the toes.

Jackson says he used curtains for the look -- telling us he went to several fabric stores before finally finding just the right product.

Jackson said the pieces -- plus the special wiring for the illumination -- took him 12 hours to put together.

Yes, the Lakers are playing like crap right now, but there's one thing they should NOT do -- trade Russell Westbrook ... so says Ty Dolla $ign, who tells TMZ Sports he believes the Purple & Gold can still turn things around with the current squad.

Brodie has been getting a ton of criticism for his sluggish start to the 2022-23 campaign ... with many calling for the Lake Show to end the Russ experiment pronto.

Ty isn't in that group ... 'cause when he was leaving Dash Radio earlier this week, he told us he thinks people are going too hard on the former MVP.

"Don't do that," the crooner told us. "Some of us have ups and downs somedays. But there's definitely going to be the ups again. Shoutout to my brother, Russ, man."

Ty defends Russell's recent blunders ... saying, "Certain times we have f***ing bad shots."

Barack Obama was in full-blown stand-up comedy mode Friday night in Georgia -- where he skewered Herschel Walker as wholly unqualified for the Senate ... among other occupations.

The ex-Prez was stumping for Rev. Raphael Warnock -- who's running to maintain his Senate seat in a highly contested race -- when he started to lay out comparisons between the current Senator and Walker ... going on to crack jokes at the latter's expense.

Watch ... BO admits Walker was a football great once upon a time, but says that alone doesn't mean he should be considered for jobs he has no experience in -- stuff like flying an airplane or surgery -- and that common sense people would ask those basic questions.

Barack hilariously compares the sitch to him being hypothetically tapped to be a running back ... something he says he absolutely would be terrible at, and that no one would want him doing. In the same vein, he says HW shouldn't be taken seriously as a would-be Senator.

Walker's now-infamous badge moment during the debate was also poked at by 44 -- with Barack likening it to playing cops and robbers. The crowd was busting up at his jokes.

For his part, Walker didn't find it funny ... but did fire back at the former President in his own campaign speech Saturday. He insisted he wasn't a celebrity, but rather ... a "warrior for God." Walker also went on to say Obama's been absent while he's been on the front lines.

Kyrie Irving is the latest celeb being accused of antisemitism after promoting a movie that some say is full of stereotypes and tropes -- but the guy's saying he's being misunderstood.

The Nets star got slammed Friday for tweeting a link to a movie called ... "Hebrews to Negroes: Wake Up Black America" which is on Amazon. It's a controversial piece to say the least ... leaning into extreme ideology from certain factions of Black Hebrew Israelites.

The whole idea behind this is that Black people actually have Jewish roots themselves -- and are, in fact, the "chosen people of God" as opposed to Jews of European descent. Like we said ... highly inflammatory, but it's a train of thought several celebs have embraced in recent years. Kanye West, obviously, but also ... Nick Cannon and Ice Cube, to name a few.

Not only does the doc Kyrie promoted discuss this, but it also reportedly spreads conspiracy theories ... including the claim that "white Jews," as it were, perpetuated the slave trade and are, by and large, in control of the media/banking industries ... among other accusations.

It's a lot of the same stuff that got Kanye in trouble ... and Kyrie's been receiving much of the same backlash, so much so that his boss -- Nets owner Joe Tsai -- said something.

He condemned Kyrie's tweet as hate-fueled, writing ... "I’m disappointed that Kyrie appears to support a film based on a book full of anti-semitic disinformation. I want to sit down and make sure he understands this is hurtful to all of us, and as a man of faith, it is wrong to promote hate based on race, ethnicity or religion." Joe adds, this is bigger than basketball.

KI defended himself Saturday, saying he meant no disrespect to anyone's religious beliefs and adding ... "the 'Anti-Semitic' label that is being pushed on me is not justified and does not reflect the reality or truth I live in everyday."

Tiger Woods was mistakenly -- and HORRIFYINGLY -- dragged into a political ad this week, calling for cop killers and mass murderers to be sentenced to death.

The legendary golfer's 2017 DUI arrest footage was front and center in the campaign ad, dubbed "Just Intentional," which was released Thursday by Kris Kobach, the Republican nominee for Kansas Attorney General.

In the ad, Kobach put his Democrat opponent, Chris Mann, on blast over his opposition to capital punishment, splicing in Wood's arrest along with images of two convicted murderers currently on Kansas’ death row.

Kobach’s spokesperson Danedri Herbert told FOX Digital the ad agency they hired was to blame for the error, but they caught it and fixed it within minutes.

Herbert went on ... "What a happy accident that media is going to pick this up and expose Chris Mann as a soft-on-crime liberal Democrat who will let cop killers and mass murderers off easy for their heinous crimes."

A new ad was cut, replacing the Woods footage with images of what appears to be a prison inmate.

Kanye West closing his Donda Academy has left the program's student-athletes in limbo ... wasting a season's worth of developing their talents.

Sources connected to the Donda boy's basketball team tell us the season has essentially been put on ice, with little to no games scheduled. We're told the kids have been dropped from several tournaments because of Kanye's antisemitic rants, and have limited practice.

Our sources say if the kids do want to practice, they have to organize on their own ... Donda isn't there for an assist, though some coaches are working to make it happen.

What's more, we're told it's becoming more and more difficult for students at Donda to transfer to another school's basketball program ... mainly because Donda's season hasn't yet been OFFICIALLY canceled. It's especially bad for the kids who have real talent and prospects to play college ball.

Our sources say one potential savior is NBA star Jaylen Brown, who recently announced he was leaving Donda Sports. We're told Jaylen is trying to save the Donda Academy team, working to help find tournaments for the players.

One game he's helped to schedule for the team already will happen next Sunday against Morehouse College.