TMZ Sports - Page 13

Kyrie Irving reportedly had a "productive and understanding visit" with NBA commissioner Adam Silver on Tuesday.

The report comes just 5 days after the All-Star guard was suspended at least 5 games for failing to adequately apologize for sharing a film containing antisemitic beliefs on Twitter.

Silver was furious with Irving after several opportunities to denounce antisemitism and the contents of the film ... saying he would be meeting him in person to address the matter.

"While we appreciate the fact that he agreed to work with the Brooklyn Nets and the Anti-Defamation League to combat antisemitism and other forms of discrimination, I am disappointed that he has not offered an unqualified apology and more specifically denounced the vile and harmful content contained in the film he chose to publicize," Silver said at the time.

According to Shams Charania, the meeting went down earlier today ... and the report states it went well for both sides.

The report says the conversation is "paving the way" for the Nets and Irving to move forward ... which could potentially mean his return to the court once the 5-game punishment is up later this week.

Nick Cannon is ripping the Brooklyn Nets for "dehumanizing" Kyrie Irving with a list of demands that must be completed before he can return ... comparing the team to a master attempting to break a slave.

Cannon defended Irving during a conversation with Anti-Defamation League CEO Jonathan Greenblatt this week ... saying, "I can wholeheartedly say I know Kyrie Irving is not antisemitic."

Greenblatt says he took serious issue with Irving sharing a film that questioned the legitimacy of the Holocaust ... which he explained is dehumanizing to Jewish people.

Cannon says it goes both ways, though ... claiming the conditions of Irving's suspension -- including meeting with Jewish leaders and completing training -- is similar to "buck-breaking."

Nick explained the term for Greenblatt, saying ... "The slave masters would bring the buck -- the one that gets out of line -- so all the other slaves would see lash after lash, show them the power to set an example. 'This is what you must do to fall in line.' So, when we see the 6 things that Kyrie must do to get his job back, that's dehumanizing."

Cannon came under fire for making antisemitic comments in 2020, when he agreed with long-held stereotypes about Jewish people ... including having control over banks and much of the world's wealth. Nick also suggested white people were "a little less" than dark-skinned people.

He also defended ex-Public Enemy member Professor Griff for saying back in the late '80s Jews spread wickedness around the world.

Cannon later apologized for his comments ... saying he was "ashamed of the uninformed and naïve place that these words came from."

Keyontae Johnson is back playing college basketball for the very first time since collapsing on the court almost two years ago ... and the guy got back to doing his thing -- dropping 13 points!!

Johnson -- who transferred to Kansas State this August -- was in the starting lineup for the Wildcats on Monday against the Texas-Rio Grande Valley Vaqueros ... helping the Wildcats secure a victory.

After the 93-59 win, Johnson talked about how emotional the moment was for him.

"I'm feeling good," Johnson said.

"Just thanking God every day for giving me the opportunity to get here and play again, just staying patient."

"The feeling before the game, I was a little emotional, but I knew the game was going to go so I had to keep going, just play and just lay everything right out for my team."

As we previously reported, the small forward crashed onto the court during the Gators-Florida State Seminoles game on Dec. 12, 2020.

The 23-year-old was transported to the hospital in critical but stable condition ... and was put into a medically induced coma.

Three days later, he was awake but never returned to the hardwood ... until now.

Dick Vitale -- a legendary college hoops announcer -- was hyped for KJ and is happy to see the young man ballin' again.

"Scored 13 points," Vitale said on Twitter, "but it really was the BEST PERFORMANCE OF THE DAY that he is healthy & doing what he LOVES!"

Bad news Giants fans ... star safety Xavier McKinney will be out several weeks after he was injured in an ATV accident in Cabo during the bye week.

The 23-year-old broke the news on Monday morning, saying he flew out to Mexico for the Giants' off days ... but, unfortunately, got hurt while he was on a sightseeing ATV tour.

"I had an accident and injured my hand," he said in a note on Twitter. "The injury will keep me sidelined for a few weeks."

It's a big blow for New York, as McKinney -- who was named a team captain this season -- is a key player on the Big Blue's defense. So far this season, he has 38 total tackles, 1 sack and 1 forced fumble.

"I will do everything I can to get back as quickly as possible so I can contribute to what we're building here in NY," McKinney added.

The Giants are 6-2 coming out of the bye and have several important games coming up, including division matchups with the 6-2 Cowboys and the 8-0 Eagles.

Micah Parsons is ready to see some OBJ TDs in Dallas ... revealing Tuesday he wants Odell Beckham Jr. on the Cowboys -- badly!!!

The superstar pass rusher made his feelings known on his Twitter page -- as rumors of a potential Beckham-Cowboys signing have begun to swirl.

"Man obj talk to me !!" Parsons wrote. "@obj let’s do this s***!!!"

Beckham is a free agent and has been allowed to sign with any team this season -- but because of a knee injury he suffered in last season's Super Bowl, he hasn't quite been healthy enough to put pen to paper on a new contract.

Reportedly, however, Beckham is nearing full strength ... and is close to making a decision on his next team -- and oddsmakers have now deemed Dallas as the favorite to be the landing spot.

Parsons would certainly love that -- but so would team owner Jerry Jones, who glowed about Odell on Tuesday on his weekly appearance on 105.3 The Fan.

"I know the Cowboys star on that helmet when he puts it on could look pretty good," Jones said.

Head coach Mike McCarthy shared a similar opinion during a meeting with media members Monday -- telling reporters he's "always been a huge fan" of the playmaking wideout.

No word on when Odell officially wants to be signed by ... but it seems it could now be just a matter of days.

There's at least one powerful celeb who ain't buying Kyrie Irving's apology ... Howard Stern absolutely shredded the NBA star, calling him a "f***ing moron" and a "douchebag!"

Of course, Irving (kinda sorta) apologized last week hours after he was hit with a minimum five-game suspension for pushing an antisemitic book/film on social media. Many felt the apology fell well short of what Irving needed to say to undo the harm he caused.

Count Stern, who happens to be Jewish, among that group ... the world's most famous radio host went in on the 30-year-old hooper Monday morning during his show.

"This Kyrie Irving is a complete douchebag. I mean what a f***ing ... you know he's a flat earther? He's a douchebag," Stern said.

Then, Howard mockingly imitated Kyrie, saying ... "Just let me hate the Jews. Don't bust my balls. I just wanna go on Twitter and hate Jews. Can't you just leave me alone? Everyone hates Jews. Why ya picking on me? I'm just an NBA player. I don't understand anything. A lot of people hate the Jews. Why ya picking on me? The Earth is flat. I think Jews are lizards. Next question. Just leave me be," Stern said to his millions of listeners.

Kyrie has served three games of his suspension ... meaning if he satisfies the team's requirements to return -- meeting with Jewish community leaders, etc. -- he could return this Saturday against the Clippers in Los Angeles.

Even if he returns, Irving reputation has suffered a massive blow ... as have his pockets.

Nike suspended its lucrative partnership with the Nets guard and halted the release of an upcoming signature sneaker.

It's not the first time Stern's gone after a celebrity who made offensive comments. Just a few weeks ago Howard compared Kanye West to just about the worst person possible ... Adolf Hitler.

"Kanye used to be fun crazy. Now he’s like Hitler," Stern said, also calling Ye a "douchebag."

A couple weeks after Stern made the comments, Kanye responded while on a podcast, telling him to "shut the f*** up," adding, "I used to be a fan of you."

Unlike Ye, Irving is yet to fire back at Howard.

Red Bull driver Sergio Pérez will have the power of the Black Panther when he hits the track in Brazil this week -- he'll be wearing an awesome 'Wakanda Forever' helmet!!

"My helmet for the next race, your thoughts?," Checo said alongside pics of the movie premiere on Monday. "Hope we can be as fast as Black Panther."

Let's be honest -- Red Bull doesn't need any vibranium on their side to come away with a win this weekend ... as they've been crushing it in 2022.

Pérez and his teammate Max Verstappen are currently at the top of the driver standings ... with the latter already securing the championship.

The helmet is really cool -- it's matte gray with the Black Panther logo on top ... with "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever" written across the back.

It's perfect timing for Checo to rock the look -- the Marvel flick is set to hit theaters on Friday.

Shakira and her sons are packing up and heading to Miami -- after she and her longtime BF turned ex Gerard Piqué have reached a new custody agreement.

In a joint statement to TMZ, the former couple says, "We have signed a custody agreement. Our sole objective is to provide our children with the utmost security and protection and hope that they can continue with their lives in a safe and calm environment."

The Colombian pop star's legal team reportedly came to an agreement with Gerard's reps during a 12-hour-long meeting. Shakira will be uprooting from Barcelona to MIA with their sons next year.

A source close to the former couple tells us the two "signed an agreement that is best for the kids -- which is their main focus and after 8 years of living in Barcelona -- her and the kids will now move back to her longtime home of Miami, where all the maternal family is."

ICYMI, Shakira and Gerard announced they would be calling it quits after 11 years together, back in June.

The last time we saw the two together publicly, they were supporting their son Milan at his baseball game ... and it appeared there was a lot of tension between the two, barely interacting.

Don't ever, EVER make a bad call in the presence of Meek Mill ... the rapper tripped a referee during the 76ers game and it was all caught on live TV!!

Kidding ... it was clearly an accident -- a funny accident -- and the ref was totally fine.

The Philly rapper was sitting courtside with Fanatics CEO Michael Rubin and Will Makris at the Suns-Sixers game at the Wells Fargo Center Monday night.

The "Dreams & Nightmares" rapper got in on the action in the 2nd quarter when his stretched-out legs got in the way of the officials running alongside the court near the Sixers' bench.

The ref fell right near Sixers' coach Doc Rivers ... who helped him back to his feet. MM quickly apologized to the ref.

Meek also acknowledged the incident on social media, using lyrics from Jay-Z's "Empire State of Mind."

"Hov once said 'I be spiked out I can trip a referee'", Meek said, "Lol I apologized to him that’s brazyyy tho 😂😂😂😂"

Rubin, however, says differently ... saying on his IG story, Meek tried to put the blame on him.

The Cavs might have lost, but Donovan Mitchell was winning after the game -- hitting up an L.A. hot spot with his beautiful girlfriend ... and TMZ Sports has the vid!!

Cleveland lost just its second game of the season against the Clippers on Monday ... falling 117-119 and snapping an 8-game winning streak, despite Spida's 30-point effort

26-year-old Mitchell and his lady, Tinara Westbrook, decided to get over the loss at The Nice Guy in West Hollywood ... enjoying a peaceful meal late into the night.

The 3-time All-Star and hair entrepreneur have been going strong this year ... making their romance "Instagram official" back in September.

Spida is off to an insane start in his first season in Wine & Gold ... averaging 31.2 points, 6 assists and 4.1 rebounds a game.

Westbrook was in attendance for the Cavs vs. Clippers game at Crypto.com Arena ... and she had some pretty good seats for the matchup.

A Vanderbilt University assistant football coach has been temporarily relieved from his duties ... after he wrote out a social media post that appeared to be defending Kanye West in wake of the artist's recent antisemitic remarks.

Dan Jackson, the school's defensive backs coach, initially posted the comment on his Facebook page -- saying in it, "Kanye is two steps ahead of everyone." He added in the post, "He's not crazy."

Jackson later apologized for it all, calling his wording "careless."

"I accept full responsibility for my words and will learn from this experience going forward," Jackson said.

But, the Commodores announced almost immediately after the post was discovered that they were investigating it all ... and on Monday night, athletic director Candice Lee said the coach will be sidelined as the probe pushes forward.

"Coach Jackson and I have agreed that he will step back from his responsibilities with the team," Lee said in a statement ... adding, "To be clear, Vanderbilt rejects antisemitism, racism and discrimination in all its forms."

Jackson is in his first year at Vanderbilt. He previously coached at Northern Illinois and South Dakota State.

A Jay-Z and Jeff Bezos partnership to buy the Washington Commanders seems to be full throttle ... because Monday night the two billionaires grabbed dinner in L.A. -- breaking bread for more than two hours.

The duo hit up Horses near the Sunset Strip at around 7:30 PM -- just a couple days after it was revealed they both had a mutual interest in putting in a bid for Daniel Snyder's Commanders. The restaurant is closed Monday, but the owner opened the doors just for them.

TMZ Sports has learned Bezos stayed tableside until about 9:30 ... while Jay didn't leave until after midnight.

Both men kept things low-key as they entered and exited the restaurant -- Jay was in a beanie and a hoodie, while Bezos was in a casual polo. Lauren Sanchez accompanied JB -- while Corey Gamble appeared to be there alongside HOV -- not sure why.

You'll recall, Snyder revealed last week he had hired Bank of America to explore a potential sale of his team ... and almost immediately afterward, Bezos and Jay-Z expressed interest.

The price tag won't be cheap -- Snyder is looking for more than $7 BILLION for the org. -- that's in the pocket change region for the 2 titans.

On Monday, just before dinner, Sanchez dropped a hint to her followers ... posting a photo with the caption, "Are you ready for some..."

Kyrie Irving will not lose his NBA career over his most recent controversy ... so says Julius Erving -- who tells TMZ Sports there's just no way teams won't give him another chance.

"The owners are greedy," Dr. J said out at LAX this weekend. "He's going to end up in the league playing for somebody, no matter how toxic he is."

There are many in Association circles that would disagree -- with some believing after he tweeted a link to an antisemitic film and then refused to apologize over it for several days, he's too radioactive to the roster at this point.

But, Erving -- an NBA legend -- tells us he believes that's just simply not the case.

"As long as he's young enough to score those buckets, and do what he does, be Kyrie, he's going have a job," he said.

Irving is currently serving a suspension from the Brooklyn Nets over it all that the team says will last at least five games -- although no one within the org. has guaranteed he'll be back with the team this year.

Erving clearly believes if the Nets somehow cut ties with the point guard, his career would resume elsewhere -- and it would do so fairly quickly.

Ultimately, the former 76ers star gave Irving some advice going forward.

Two Arkansas football players were arrested after they were allegedly involved in a physical altercation with police ... just hours after the Razorbacks lost their homecoming game.

According to the Fayetteville Police Dept., Anthony Brown and Myles Slusher were involved in an alleged incident at 2 AM on Sunday ... when officers were on foot patrol near a pub less than a mile from campus.

In court documents, an FPD officer said Brown -- a freshman defensive back from Tennessee -- was standing in the street and was instructed to get on the sidewalk ... and he initially complied.

However, according to the docs, when officers circled back around, Brown was "intentionally" standing in the street again.

"I walked to Brown and grabbed his sleeve of his right arm," the officer said in the docs. "I walked with Brown to the sideway."

That's when things allegedly got physical ... with the cop saying in the documents that Brown pushed him away -- which forced him to take the 19-year-old to the ground and into custody.

"Brown engaged in fighting behavior," the officer wrote, "congregated with two or more other people in a public place refusing to comply with a lawful order to disperse, and obstructed vehicular traffic in a public place."

According to cops, while Brown was getting cuffed, Slusher -- a junior defensive back -- grabbed the arresting officer in order to try to pull him off of Brown, according to the docs.

Slusher was eventually taken into custody as well.

Brown and Slusher were transported to the Washington County Detention Center and released later Sunday morning. Both are facing disorderly conduct charges. A court date for the duo has been set for December.

The incident happened shortly after the Razorbacks lost to the Liberty Flames. Arkansas head coach Sam Pittman said in a statement Sunday the team was aware of the arrests.

"We are in the process of gathering information from the proper authorities," Pittman said. "Once we have that information, we will determine their status with our team."

Two Houston Astros fans got into a wild brawl during the team's World Series celebration on Monday -- where hair was pulled, and PLENTY of punches were thrown.

The fight took place at some point during the MLB team's through-the-streets festivities in Houston ... when two women grew so upset with each other, they decided to settle their beef with their hands.

Video shot by a fan near the fracas shows the two immediately went for each others' hair ... and, eventually, the woman in an Alex Bregman jersey was hurled down to the sidewalk.

You can see in the clip, the Bregman fan tried her best to fight back ... throwing a slew of punches from the ground -- but she got pummeled until others tried to step in.

Ted Cruz is back in Texas, but he's still hearing boos -- the senator just got an earful of jeers from fans in Houston while he was riding in the Astros' World Series parade.

Cruz was on a military jeep as part of the celebration for the best team in baseball ... and cameras caught fans laying into him as his ride made its way through the streets.

People booed loudly ... and, according to Astros reporter Ben DuBose, some even flipped the lawmaker the bird.

Of course, this is far from the first time Cruz has heard the heckling ... in fact, just two weeks ago, fans at Yankee Stadium tore into him during NY's ALCS game against the 'Stros.

Cruz, who was reppin' Houston with an orange shirt and a blue vest, got booed loudly, with one man even calling him a "racist piece of s***."

Cruz appears to have gotten the last laugh on everyone, though -- his beloved Astros closed out the Yankees that night, and then went on to beat the Phillies, 4-2, in the W.S. this weekend.

As for the rest of the parade, the guys all seem to be having a blast celebrating their second title in six seasons.