TMZ Sports - Page 25

Tristan Thompson is opening up for the first time about his mother's unexpected death ... penning her an emotional tribute letter on Instagram, writing his "soul is empty" since her passing.

"Dearest mommy in heaven, It has been one month since you’ve been gone," the former NBA player wrote.

"I’m in disbelief. I'm in the deepest part of sorrow & grief. My soul is empty as I come to terms that my biggest supporter/superhero is gone."

The 31-year-old continued, writing about the sacrifices his mom made for him and his siblings.

"Mommy, all the sacrifices you did for ur sons will never go unnoticed or without appreciation. You were an amazing mommy, role model, best friend & the strongest woman I know."

Thompson also touched on some of the public mistakes he's made as an adult, vowing to show his mom raised a good man.

"Im sorry mommy for the wrong decisions Ive made in my life. Im sorry for the embarrassment &pain. You raised me better than what I was able to show you," Tristan wrote.

"But I have also learned sorry is not enough. Actions speak louder than words. So I wont just say sorry. Stay tuned to the ways I will show the world what an amazing son you raised."

Fans, NBA stars, and celebs flooded Thompson's IG comments with support, including his former teammate LeBron James and Kim Kardashian, who left a heart and dove emoji.

Of course, Kim's sister Khloe -- who shares two kids with Tristan -- and the Kardashian family have been by his side since his mom, Andrea, suffered a heart attack at her home in Toronto on Jan. 5.

Tom Brady clearly ain't letting himself go in retirement ... the former quarterback just shared a selfie in nothing but his undies -- and he looks GOOOOOOOD!!!!

TB12 posted the pic early Monday morning on his Twitter page ... paying off a bet he made with his clothing company way back in June.

At the time, he said he'd recreate models wearing his Brady brand underwear if the tweet got 40,000 likes. When the co. reminded him of it all Monday, he paid it off in a big way ... and we're all grateful for it.

Tom showed off some biceps, some pecs, and a set of abs -- all while his hand was conveniently placed to cover up his junk.

He mentioned Julian Edelman and Rob Gronkowski while revealing the pic -- asking the two, who have posed often in their undies for various brands in their lifetimes, if he was doing it right.

Of course, Tom's bod shouldn't exactly surprise anybody -- while he's a retired man now, it's only been a couple weeks since he left football.

Joe Mixon allegedly threatened to a shoot woman in a "road rage" incident just one day before the Bengals' playoff game against the Bills ... this according to a police report, obtained by TMZ Sports.

In the Cincinnati Police Dept. documents, cops say the alleged incident happened at 12:49 PM on Jan. 21 -- less than 24 hours before Cincinnati played the Bills in the Divisional Round in Buffalo.

According to the docs, a 43-year-old woman told cops that an "unknown suspect" -- later believed to be Mixon -- "brandished a firearm and threatened to shoot her."

She added, per the report, that it was all "a result of a 'road rage' incident."

A warrant for Mixon's arrest was eventually filed last week for one count of misdemeanor aggravated menacing. In court documents, authorities said Mixon told the alleged victim at the time, "You should be popped in the face, I should shoot you, the police can't get me."

The case, however, was dismissed on Friday after prosecutors said they needed "additional investigation before we would move forward with this case." Officials said there was still a chance it could all be refiled in the future.

Beware, NFL defenders ... yet another Manning appears to be headed toward a pro sideline in a few years -- this time, it's Peyton Manning's kid, who showed off an incredible arm at this weekend's Pro Bowl!!

Marshall Manning grabbed the pigskin for a few warmup and cool-down drills while at the NFL's All-Star event in Las Vegas ... and it ain't hard to see the apple's falling about as close to the tree as possible.

The 11-year-old looked awesome throwing to former NFL star (and Peyton's old teammate!) Marcus Pollard, even directing the guy mid-route to try to get him open against Ray Lewis.

Marshall was also seen hitting Vikings superstar Justin Jefferson with some pinpoint passes. He got a touchdown throw in a flag football game warmup as well.

Of course, the young Manning being a future baller should surprise exactly no one -- quarterbacking runs seriously deep in the bloodline. Peyton and his little bro Eli dominated the league for years, as did their dad, Archie Manning. Big brother Cooper Manning's son, Arch Manning, meanwhile, is the top-ranked recruit in the country and is expected to be a star at the Univ. of Texas for the next few years.

It wasn't Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, or even LeBron James ... no, the toughest person Gary Payton said he ever had to guard was none other than John Stockton.

The NBA Hall of Famer made the shocking revelation in a chat about hoops with TMZ Sports ... saying the former Utah Jazz point guard was just that damn good.

"I think the hardest person I ever had to guard was John Stockton because of the way he would do 94 feet and go everywhere," he said. "That's my opinion."

'Stock', a 10-time All-Star who played 19 seasons in the NBA, was 6-foot-1, but 'The Glove' told us John's ability to utilize all the space on the court offensively made him a super difficult cover.

And, when Payton said he compared it to the trouble he had with MJ, LeBron and Kobe ... Stockton was just harder to deal with.

As for basketball's G.O.A.T. debate ... Payton weighed in on that too, telling us that while he believes LBJ is the better basketball player, Jordan was the better closer.

"I think LeBron was a better all-around player because he can pass the ball and rebound," Payton said. "I think Michael was a better killer. He'll go after you. He'll take a shot whenever he needed to and make it and do it. He was more of a killer."

Trevor Noah kicked off the 65th annual Grammy Awards with a lot of humor, and a little meet-cute too ... linking up Adele with Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson for the very first time.

The comedian -- who was back in the hosting seat again -- ran through a pretty zippy monologue that hopscotched over a lot of big celebs, including Harry Styles, Taylor Swift, Lizzo, Beyoncé and Adele ... the last of which he honed in on for an official introduction.

Check it out ... TN says he'd done his homework on tonight's nominees, and read somewhere that Adele had never gotten a face-to-face with the wrestler-turned-actor.

At first, Trevor made it seem like he didn't actually have Dwayne on hand, but then trotted the dude out anyway -- which totally caught Adele by surprise. She got up and gave him a hug/kiss ... and DJ even plopped himself down at her table as the camera panned away.

When it comes to the other jokes ... he said Harry Styles was in the unique position to have panties thrown at him onstage and possibly wear them afterward, and he also jabbed at Taylor Swift by flipping her 'Anti-Hero' song on its head ... while taking a shot at Southwest.

Trevor also made sure to point that Queen Bey is on the verge of history ... she's up for a record number of Grammys, and stands a chance to win the most ever tonight too.

Pete Davidson is a captain at the Pro Bowl Games in Vegas this weekend -- which is sort of a weird sight ... but not nearly as bizarre as the ink Amon-Ra St. Brown was rocking.

The Lions WR was front and center Sunday for the off-weekend just before the Super Bowl next week, and during an interview with Robert Griffin III ... he showed off what appeared a relatively fresh tattoo he had plastered on his arm ... a tat of Pete's face, no less.

There's some writing underneath the drawing of PD's mug too ... it says, "Pete #1" -- as in Pete's #1 fan. Unclear if it's real or not, but Pete was brought over to take a closer look.

He was clearly impressed and moved by the gesture -- apparently, Amon-Ra is a big fan -- but he also said what most everyone else was thinking ... hopefully, that thing comes off!

As for why Pete's there at all ... he's just one of a handful of celebs on the field to help spice things up. Snoop Dogg and other stars are there too, and everyone's just goofing around and hamming it up for the camera -- notable during Pete's Best Catch judging.

Naturally, there were jokes made about his dating resume, which includes a lot of high-profile women he's been with over the years. Good sport that he is, Pete leaned in.

At one point, RGIII even made a little crack about Pete's "game" off the field ... and the dude was appreciative of the compliment -- noting, he's just there to have a good time.

Jack Harlow's acting debut got a first look this weekend in the new trailer for the rebooted "White Men Can't Jump" -- and the consensus on Twitter seems to be ... uh, yeah, no.

Indeed ... Hulu dropped the trailer for the flick Sunday, which is hitting their service exclusively in May. Everyone already knew Jack was attached to the project -- replacing Woody Harrelson's character from the OG -- and now ... the reactions are pouring in online.

While there are certainly some who were left impressed with what they saw -- specifically from Jack -- the honest truth is ... most don't seem all that interested in checking this one out, and they're voicing it in pretty passionate (and sometimes hilarious) terms.

The best way to get an unbiased read on how folks actually feel about it is to hop into the comment sections of film/rap/basketball blog accounts that reposted the trailer. It's there you'll see almost everybody echoing a similar sentiment ... this didn't need to be remade.

Then, there are the tweets specifically aimed at Jack's performance ... or at least what we've seen of it thus far. Those ones are little more harsh, especially since there are other white dudes that bird app users apparently would've liked to have seen more ... like Tristan Jass.

Others are harping on the fact that the studio here seems to have wanted to capitalize on Jack's music fame to boost this a bit -- which some see as gimmicky and unnecessary.

One Twitter user put Jack's performance this way in response to someone who said he doesn't come across as half bad in the role ... writing, "He's not white enough." 😅

The bigger takeaway is that people appear upset at the fact that Hollywood has rebooted yet another cult classic ... even when no one really asked for it. They did it again earlier this year with "House Party," and now there's this. Not to mention all the reboots of years past.

For the uninitiated, reboots are part of movie-making DNA ... so they'll be around no matter what. As for Jack, dude's probably too busy to listen to all the noise ... he's up for 3 Grammys tonight, so he's preoccupied. And besides, the film's done and it's coming out.🤷🏽‍♂️

Kyrie Irving got his wish -- the NBA superstar has been traded to the Dallas Mavericks, according to multiple reports.

News of Irving's intentions to leave Brooklyn were made clear on Friday ...with the 30-year-old telling the Nets to either trade him, or he'd leave in free agency in the offseason.

Now, Uncle Drew will be teaming up with Luka Doncic and the Mavericks, who sit sixth in the Western Conference standings.

In exchange for Irving, the Mavs will send Spencer Dinwiddie back to BK ... as well as Dorian Finney-Smith, a first-round pick and a handful of second-rounders, according to Shams Charania.

The Los Angeles Lakers, LA Clippers and Phoenix Suns were also reportedly in the running for Irving ... but there was growing concern over sending a haul for the guard, when he could bolt in free agency in August.

Nets fans were clearly upset with Irving's request out of Brooklyn -- and showed their feelings by booing him before the Nets vs. Washington Wizards game on Saturday.

Irving found himself in hot water during his time in Brooklyn ... after he controversially tweeted a link to a movie filled with anti-Semitic beliefs.

The 2016 champ was suspended over his actions, and the NBA and Nets called for Irving to denounce the contents of the film. Nike also announced it was cutting ties with the Irving.

Irving eventually apologized days later.

Arnold Schwarzenegger was involved in a traffic accident that sent a bicyclist to the ER -- but it's not something he could've avoided or is to blame over ... TMZ has learned.

Sources familiar with the situation tell us the movie star was driving in West L.A. Sunday morning, when at some point ... a woman riding a bike on the road suddenly swerved into his lane and made contact with his vehicle -- something confirmed by 3 eyewitnesses.

We're told first responders arrived on the scene and that the woman was transported to a hospital. Arnold, our sources say, was also on the scene speaking with cops.

As for how the police view this, thus far ... law enforcement sources tell us it appears Schwarzenegger is not at fault for this collision. An investigation is ongoing, but we're told a determination has been made that it's something he simply couldn't have avoided.

Our sources tell us the woman suffered minor injuries, and is expected to be okay.

Former NFL cornerback Vontae Davis -- who last played with the Buffalo Bills in 2018 -- was arrested for DUI in Florida, TMZ Sports has confirmed.

A spokesperson for the Florida Highway Patrol tells us ... officers responded to a crash involving two vehicles on State Road 821 in Florida on Saturday, Feb. 4 around 7:51 am.

Once officers arrived on the scene, they noticed a black 4-door Tesla with heavy front end damage and a bronze pickup Toyota truck with heavy rear end damage.

According to police docs, Davis, who was identified as the driver of the Tesla, failed to maintain control of his vehicle ... and collided with the pickup truck.

The force from the collision caused the pickup truck to hit a nearby pedestrian ... who sustained multiple injuries and was transported to the hospital.

Law enforcement authorities say they observed Davis -- who played ten seasons in the NFL with the Colts, Dolphins, and Bills -- laying down sleeping on the right shoulder of the road.

When police were interviewing Davis, they say they noticed his eyes were bloodshot, and he needed to lean on the barrier to prevent himself from falling to the ground.

Police say they asked Davis if he had been drinking ... he replied, "Yes, I had two drinks. Two mixed drinks."

Officers say they asked Davis if they could administer a standard field sobriety test ... but the ex-NFL CB refused, saying, "No."

Now batting for the Atlanta Braves ... Travis Kelce?!?

A former MLB scout tells TMZ Sports that very well could have been a possibility this year and beyond -- if only Kelce had opted to play baseball instead of football after high school.

Reggie Sanders -- who scouted for the Braves in the Ohio area as Kelce was starring at Cleveland Heights H.S. in the early 2000s -- tells us that in his several trips to see the teenager who grew up to be a Kansas City Chiefs star ... he was blown away by what he saw.

Sanders remembered the future tight end as a good hitter with blazing speed ... and noted the young Kelce, who graduated H.S. in 2008, was towering, too.

"He seemed like a big leaguer on a field of high school players," said Sanders, who worked for the Braves from 2002 to 2007. "He looks almost the same size today as he was in high school."

Sanders said after watching Kelce play, he was "certain" the guy would have ended up in the big leagues if he had stuck with it ... telling us, "I remember writing his report and I comped him to Josh Hamilton."

Of course, Kelce never stayed with baseball -- he opted to follow in his big brother's footsteps and play football at Cincinnati. The rest, as you know, is history ... and he'll be playing for his second Super Bowl championship next week.

Deion Branch got a little taste of what being a college head coach would feel like when he was thrust into the interim role at Louisville in December ... and now, he tells TMZ Sports he could see himself handling the role full-time one day.

The former NFL receiver had to step in at the 2022 Fenway Bowl on Dec. 17 after then Cardinals HC Scott Satterfield bolted for Cincinnati -- and Branch shined as fill-in head man, leading his alma mater to a 24-7 victory.

Branch -- who had been UL's Director of Player Development last season before taking the interim gig -- called it all a "great experience" ... and one he could see himself doing every day somewhere down the line.

"I loved it," Branch said. "I loved every second of it."

The 43-year-old said seeing some of his former peers -- including Deion Sanders -- succeeding in the coaching world has given him a bit of an itch to score a job going forward too.

LeBron James breaking Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's scoring record won't silence his critics, so says his former teammate Michael Beasley ... telling TMZ Sports, "they gon' keep hating."

Remember, James is only a few points away from becoming the NBA's all-time scoring leader -- a record that Kareem has held for almost four decades.

You would think with such an accomplishment, the ones who doubt King James would come around ... but Beasley says that won't happen, even when he's crowned.

"They gon' keep hating," the former NBA power forward tells us at LAX this week.

"It's a good percentage of the world that just wanna go against the grain. That's literally what we get. We get the ones who wanna go against the grain."

Beasley -- who played with LBJ in Miami and Los Angeles -- says James deserves respect from the doubters ... and they have no choice but to give him his flowers after this feat.

"He earned it," MB says, "You can't really say too much after that, you know. He the best."

BTW ... Beasley says he wouldn't mind playing alongside LeBron again, telling us he'd be down to sign back with the Lakers.

Doug Williams tells TMZ Sports he teared up after Patrick Mahomes and Jalen Hurts officially made the Super Bowl ... comparing the moment to when Barack Obama first got elected.

Williams, the first-ever Black starting quarterback to win the Lombardi Trophy, said the tears never quite spilled over onto his cheeks -- but he said they were there, and they were filled with happiness nonetheless.

"I had tears of joy in my eye because I had an opportunity to witness this," the former Washington signal-caller said.

"Sit there, and just look at it, and say to myself, 'Man, we got two Black quarterbacks playing in the Super Bowl.'"

Williams said he had similar feelings when Obama beat out John McCain in the 2008 Presidential Election ... and also when Tony Dungy and Lovie Smith coached against each other in the Colts vs. Bears Super Bowl XLI.

"Things like that," Williams said, "give me joy. Give me chills."

Williams became the first Black QB to win a Super Bowl in 1988, when Washington beat Denver in SB XXII. Since then, Russell Wilson and Mahomes are the only two who have accomplished the same feat.

NASCAR star Ross Chastain says he's honored that his iconic wall-riding stunt is now banned in the rule book ... telling TMZ Sports, "I'm proud that I'll be the first and last guy to successfully do it.

Remember, the 30-year-old Trackhouse Racing driver went viral for his video game-inspired move at Martinsville Speedway last year ... when he shot from 10th place to 5th on the final lap to secure his spot in the Championship 4 by hitting the wall to reach insane speed to cross the finish line

While the move was considered legal at the time, NASCAR recently emphasized its rules to make sure the stunt isn't replicated in the future.

"I'm good with it," Chastain told Lucas Widman ahead of the Busch Light Clash at the Coliseum. "I'm proud that I've got a rule named after me, right?"

Chastain explained his inspiration for the move after the race ... saying he "played a lot of NASCAR 2005 on the GameCube" when he was 8 years old.

The wall-ride is now explicitly stated as a big no-no in the rule book, and Chastain says it's a tip of the cap to his team ... and their ability to push his car to the limits.

"I take it as a badge of honor that I want my crew chief and my engineers and my mechanics pushing the limits of the car -- I don't want to break the rules, but I want them to have to write new rules and explain things more clearly where we might find a gray area on the car."

As for whether he'd ever try the move again ... and he makes it clear it was a one-time thing.

"I don't want to do it again," Chastain said. "I don't want to see guys doing it. And, I'm proud that I'll be the first and last guy to successfully do it."

NASCAR is in Los Angeles on Sunday for the race at the L.A. Coliseum ... and it's safe to say no one will be purposely slamming into the wall.