TMZ Sports - Page 45

Life on the outside is proving to be GOOOOOD for Bobby Shmurda -- the formerly incarcerated rapper got the VIP treatment at the Brooklyn Nets game on Monday ... and a signed jersey from superstar James Harden!

The 26-year-old had been in custody since December 2014 after he was charged with conspiracy to murder and other gun charges.

In 2016, Shmurda copped a plea deal to conspiracy to possess weapons and possession of a weapon -- and was sentenced to 7 years in prison followed by 5 years probation.

He was released in February 2021 and immediately embraced by rap stars like Quavo. He also had a big presence during NBA All-Star Weekend.

And, the celebration continued Monday night at Barclay's Center where Shmurda enjoyed a VIP suite to watch the Nets take on the NY Knicks.

After Brooklyn secured the W, James Harden took off his game-worn jersey and presented it to Shmurda -- along with a personal message and signature on the threads.

Shmurda was so fired up about the gift, he went right to the media and showed it off while sporting that sick new gold chain he recently scooped up.

19-year-old Timur Faizutdinov -- a star player in Russia's Junior Hockey League -- has tragically died after being hit in the head by a puck ... his team announced Tuesday.

Faizutdinov was skating for his Dynamo St. Petersburg's squad in a playoff matchup with Loko Yaroslavl on March 12 when his opponent accidentally flipped a puck at his head.

The frozen rubber caught Faizutdinov up high near his temple ... and he immediately crumpled to the ground in pain.

Faizutdinov -- St. Petersburg's captain -- was rushed to the hospital ... but, unfortunately, his team announced he died this week due to the injuries the puck caused.

"Dynamo Saint Petersburg defenseman Timur Faizutdinov has tragically passed away at the age of 19," Faizutdinov's team wrote in a statement.

"He had received a fatal head injury during an MHL match against Loko in Yaroslavl on March 12. SKA Hockey Club extends its deepest condolences to Timur’s family and friends."

Faizutdinov had reportedly logged nearly 200 games for Dynamo St. Petersburg in his career ... and had just been named team captain.

Dynamo St. Petersburg announced it will hold moments of silence for Faizutdinov prior to its upcoming games for the foreseeable future.

Jennifer Lopez and Alex Rodriguez reaching a breaking point came as a total shock to their kids -- and that's one major reason the couple's together right now in the Dominican Republic trying to patch things up.

Sources close to the couple tell TMZ ... neither of them expected news to break on Friday about their split, and as a result, they didn't have time to prepare their 4 children ... who've all grown very close.

We're told J Lo's 13-year-old twins, Emme and Max, and A-Rod's teenage daughters, 16-year-old Natasha and 12-year-old Ella, were all devastated by the discussions the modern family had on Friday of a possible break up. As one source put it, "There were many tears."

As we first told you ... people close to the couple acknowledged things were "bad" between J Lo and A-Rod that day -- but on Saturday morning they told us "We are working through some things," and there was no third party involved in their issues.

We're told the kids weighed heavily in the long conversation Alex and Jen had Friday night.

The fact is, both families have blended as one, enjoying holidays and vacations together and all the other fun stuff kids do, so there's a lot at stake.

TMZ broke the story ... Alex fueled up the jet and flew to the D.R. to be with Jennifer, who's been down there shooting a movie. They'd been apart for about 2 weeks, but on Monday morning Alex posted video from their oceanfront pad, tagged J Lo and said he was moving "onward" and "upward" in the new week.

Tiger Woods is back in the video game business -- signing a HUGE new contract with 2K to appear in its PGA Tour game franchise.

So, yeah ... YOU'LL BE ABLE TO PLAY AS TIGER WOODS AGAIN!!

This is massive news for the guy who was once the king of golf video games!!!

Remember, Tiger dominated the gaming world with his Tiger Woods PGA Tour games from 1999 to 2013 -- but hasn't taken a swing in the digital space since.

That's changing though ... 2K announced Tuesday morning it signed Tiger to an "exclusive, long-term partnership" -- in which he will also serve as an "executive director" for its PGA Tour game franchise.

The deal means Tiger's image and likeness can be used in all PGA Tour 2K golf games.

Tiger -- who's still recovering from a bad February car crash -- issued a statement on the deal ... saying, "I am looking forward to making my return to the video game landscape, and with 2K and HB Studios, I’ve found the right partners to make it happen."

"I'm honored to take part in this opportunity and look forward to sharing my expertise and insights as we build the future of golf video games together."

NHL forward Jujhar Khaira was knocked out after taking a violent punch during a fight Monday -- and the blow was so vicious, the Oilers player had to leave the game due to injury.

The scrap went down in the 1st period of Edmonton's clash with Calgary ... shortly after Khaira infuriated Flames players by checking Oliver Kylington in the head with his shoulder.

Calgary forward Brett Ritchie hunted Khaira down, got him to drop the gloves for a fight, and then socked him right in the face.

You can see in the clip, Khaira appeared to be KO'd on his feet ... and once the 26-year-old hit the ice, he looked at refs with a completely dazed expression on his face.

Khaira immediately headed for the locker room to be looked at by trainers ... and he did not return to the contest afterward.

Thankfully, in the post-game, Edmonton coach Dave Tippett said he believed Khaira was "feeling all right" and is now just day-to-day dealing with the after-effects of the tilt.

The tournament hasn't even started yet ... and already the NCAA is down 6 referees for March Madness due to COVID.

The NCAA has confirmed 6 referees were sent home from Indianapolis -- where a controlled bubble-style environment has been set up in the hopes of limiting exposure.

The NCAA says 1 of the officials tested positive for COVID-19 on March 15 -- "and 5 other officials the person interacted with the day before were identified as exposure risks due to prolonged close contact."

"Based on tournament protocols and contract tracing with local public health authorities, these officials may not participate in the tournament."

Now, the ref who tested positive "must be placed in isolation, and the other officials must be placed in quarantine."

The tournament -- one of the most exciting events in sports -- is set to kick off on Thursday.

The NCAA had tapped 60 referees in total to work the tourney -- now, they're down to 54 refs to work the 63 total games.

The NCAA tourney has already felt the impact of COVID -- just ask the defending champs from the Univ. of Virginia.

Most of the Cavaliers players are still in quarantine after one member of the program tested positive for COVID. They're not expected to arrive in Indy until Friday, the day before their 1st-round game against Ohio.

The NCAA has a backup plan in case teams need to pull out -- they've booked 4 teams as backup squads  ... Louisville, Colorado State, Saint Louis and Mississippi.

The backup teams will only be on standby until Tuesday -- after that, a team that withdraws due to COVID will not be replaced.

How's the best NFL draft prospect in the country celebrating his final weeks as an unmarried man??

VEGAS, BABY!!!

TMZ Sports has learned Trevor Lawrence hit up Sin City for a low-key bachelor party over the weekend -- bro-ing down at a casino table with his pals and living it up just days before he's set to marry his longtime GF, Marissa Mowry.

A witness tells us the 21-year-old ex-Clemson QB was at Mandalay Bay at around 11:30 p.m. Sunday ... gambling with some buds and keeping his surgically repaired left shoulder safe in a sling.

We're told Lawrence had security to watch his back ... but was super cool with fans who recognized him.

Unclear which game Lawrence was playing and how much cash he was betting ... but don't worry, he can afford to gamble -- as next month's projected #1 overall pick, he's expected to sign a 4-year deal worth around $40 MILLION!!

As for the upcoming nuptials, Lawrence and Mowry -- who have dated since 2016 and got engaged in July 2020 -- are scheduled to tie the knot sometime in early April.

Ted Cruz is liking what he's seeing with the country's vaccination rollout, and it's got him thinking about ballin' ... even though the court at the Senate gym sucks.

The Texas Senator was arriving at Reagan National Airport in D.C. Monday when he had a hopeful chat with our photog about returning to normal, putting the pandemic behind us ... and taking a member of his staff to the hole.

Sounds like Ted's got a case of March Madness, and even though he tells us the basketball court at the Senate's facility is terrible ... he's ready to "bang around a little bit."

If ya don't know, Cruz ain't bad when it comes to playing hoops ... at least compared to Jimmy Kimmel. He took down his late-night talk show host rival in a sweaty mess of a 1-on-1 match back in 2018. Thankfully, it was all for charity.

Clearly, Ted's itching to get back to the sport and says everyone's eager to get out of their houses after a year of dealing with COVID-19 ... and he's encouraged we're getting closer to normalcy.

Rob Gronkowski told us it was happening, and now it's official -- the superstar tight end has re-signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers with a deal worth up to $10 million!!!

Remember, 31-year-old Gronk told TMZ Sports just last week he wasn't handing in his retirement papers just yet ... saying he was ready to run it back as Tom Brady and Co. try to repeat as Super Bowl champions.

"I'm back, man!" Gronk told us. "I will be back playing football, man. I love the game of football. I loved playing last year. I had a great time."

Gronk wasted no time with free agency kicking off this week ... agreeing to a 1-year, $10 milli deal on Monday.

Rob was solid in 2020 -- his first season back since leaving the game in 2018 -- putting up more than 600 yards and 7 TDs.

Oh yeah, and the guy won his 4th Super Bowl. Not too shabby.

Gronk reacted to the news with a nod to the SpongeBob SquarePants pirate ... saying, "Arrr You Ready Kids??"

Several players from the Norman High School girls basketball team have broken their silence about the racist comments directed at them by a game announcer ... and they're calling for action.

It's powerful stuff.

The players have teamed up with famous civil rights attorney  Ben Crump -- who has worked with the families of several high-profile victims of police or racial violence ... from Ahmaud Arbery to Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, and Jacob Blake.

Crump held a news conference Monday with several of the players and their families -- who all spoke out about Matt Rowan, the announcer who hurled the n-word at the team for their decision to take a knee during the national anthem.

As we previously reported, Rowan's comments were caught on a hot mic -- and people at home could hear him bashing the NHS players who were demonstrating to spotlight police brutality and racial injustice.

During his rant, Rowan said he hoped the Norman team would get their asses kicked on the court that night.

Rowen later apologized for his language -- and said he's a Type-1 diabetic who loses his ability to censor himself when his blood sugar is high, which he claims happened that night.

FYI, the Norman High School girls basketball team went on to win the Oklahoma 6-A state championship over the weekend.

The players say they were obviously hurt and shocked by the comments -- but they're proud of the way they stood together as a team and still WON the whole tourney!

Ben Crump says there are no plans to take legal action at this time ... but continued to praise the team for thriving in such a challenging moment.

Michael Rapaport ain't happy with the punishment dished out to NBA player Meyers Leonard in the wake of his anti-Semitic slur ... suggesting he it would have been way worse if he used the n-word instead of the k-word.

Rapaport was one of Leonard's harshest critics after the Miami Heat center used the k-word to insult an opponent during a video game live stream session earlier this month ... calling him a "dumb f**k" and demanding a sincere video apology.

The NBA has since imposed a 1-week suspension on Leonard and fined him $50,000.

Meyers has apologized and vowed to work with leaders run the Jewish community to educate himself on why the word is so dangerous and offensive.

But, Rap says that's not good enough ... and he's comparing the situation to the announcer who hurled the n-word at a high school basketball team in Oklahoma.

"Why is that any worse than the Myers Leonard thing?" Rapaport told us.

"I'm not happy with [Leonard's] punishment, but I think if he had said a different word -- if it had been a white guy saying the n-word, he’d be cut."

Rap continued, "Every single athlete would have spoken out about it, every single actor -- white, black and in between -- would have spoken out about it and it would still be discussed a week later."

Merriam-Webster defines the word "coalesce" as a verb meaning "to grow together."

... and NBA superstar Jimmy Butler clearly could not care less.

The Miami Heat wing BODIED a reporter Sunday for bringing that big word to his post-game press conference ... saying the guy didn't need to flex his brainy vocabulary when asking a simple question about how the team has bonded over the past few weeks.

The hilarious scene all went down after Butler led the Heat to a win over the Orlando Magic ... when a media member tried to ask the 31-year-old about Miami's recent team success.

"Does it feel like you're coalescing, as much as the record shows, into something?" the reporter asked. "I mean, 10 of 11 [games] is pretty special."

The "coalescing" term threw Butler off guard immediately ... watch the clip, his reaction is priceless!

"Don't do that," Jimmy said to the reporter. "Come on, now. What the hell does that mean?!"

The reporter tried to explain his question ... before Jimmy said, "You said a big word. You confused me."

The media member explained further ... saying he simply meant "coming together, congealing, gelling."

And that's when JB told the guy, "You could have just said that" ... before ultimately answering the question.

Things are looking up between Alex Rodriguez and Jennifer Lopez ... at least that's how A-Rod seems to view their relationship, now that they're in the same place.

TMZ has confirmed A-Rod flew to the Dominican Republic, where J Lo has been shooting a movie, and Monday morning he posted video from their luxury digs down there. His caption said, "Happy Monday. New week,. New day. Onward. Upward."

BTW, he also tagged J Lo tag in his post.

Remember, A-Rod told a photog Saturday in Miami he is definitely NOT single. He and Jennifer told TMZ, "We are working through some things."

Sources with direct knowledge told us those issues they're working on do not involve a third person.

Now, we're told A-Rod's been going to the DR every few weeks while Jen's been there shooting -- so this current trip could've been planned all along. Still, the fact he's carried through with it ... is a sign they might work it all out, after all.

Eulogio "Frankie" De La Cruz -- a relief pitcher who was a key cog in the trade that sent Miguel Cabrera from the Marlins to the Tigers -- died Sunday ... MLB officials confirmed.

He was just 37 years old.

De La Cruz's Dominican winter league team, Toros del Este, was first to report the news Monday morning, saying in a statement, "Our condolences to his family and friends for this terrible loss. Peace to your Soul!"

The Diario Libre in the D.R. reported the team added his death was due to a heart attack.

De La Cruz signed with the Detroit Tigers as a teenager in 2001 ... and eventually made his debut for the big-league club in 2007.

He was traded just a short time later, though, as one of the pieces that helped Detroit land one of the greatest MLB players ever.

The Tigers sent De La Cruz -- along with several other notable names including Andrew Miller and Cameron Maybin -- to the Marlins in exchange for Cabrera and ace pitcher Dontrelle Willis.

De La Cruz didn't do much in his short time with the Marlins in 2008, and was later traded to the Padres, who released him after the 2009 season.

De La Cruz went on to pitch in Tokyo ... and eventually latched on with the Brewers in 2011, when he had his best season as a pro, logging a 2.77 ERA in 13 innings pitched.

De La Cruz -- who also had a stint in the Chicago Cubs' organization -- had reportedly still been pitching professionally in the D.R. just this past winter.

Didn't see this coming ...

UFC legend Georges St-Pierre -- one of the greatest of all time -- says he actually HATED fighting during his 15 year MMA career.

... but he stuck around so long because he was addicted to the feeling he got after winning a match!

The 39-year-old superstar opened up about the situation recently on "The Complex Sports Podcast" ... and didn't mince his words.

"I don’t like the fighting. I hate it. It’s unbearable," GSP said ... "The feeling of stress. Not knowing if you will be humiliated or you might get hurt. It’s so hard."

"But when you win a fight, it’s really worth it. The bigger the risk, the bigger the reward. So that’s why I did it. Not because I love to fight. I love to win."

And one thing GSP did a lot during his career was win -- finishing his MMA career with a 26-2 record ... with victories over legends like BJ Penn, Michael Bisping, Nick Diaz, Matt Hughes and more.

GSP formally retired in 2019 -- 2 years after his last fight -- and has repeatedly said a comeback is most likely off the table.

Now, he's focusing on acting -- reprising his role as the French mercenary Georges Batroc in the upcoming Marvel series, "The Falcon and the Winter Soldier."

Georges says he uses some of his skills from fighting to help him as an actor.

"Like in fighting, acting requires a lot of repetition, a lot of preparation. In fighting, you do a lot of those as well and very often when you fight, you find out your opponent is never as good as you think he is and he’s never as bad as you think he is as well. It’s always different."

The main difference ... GSP acknowledges the stakes are much higher in fighting.

“In fighting, you only get one take. If you zig when you should zag --  boom! It can cost you not only a loss but it can cost you obviously cerebral damage. Damage that can cause your death. It’s very dangerous."

The Texas Rangers are paying tribute to Charley Pride -- who owned part of the team -- by naming a baseball field after the country music legend.

The Rangers announced the decision Sunday ... unveiling "Charley Pride Field" at the official Rangers spring training complex in Surprise, Arizona.

“Introducing Charley Pride Field! You are greatly missed,” the team said in a statement.

Pride -- a Country Music Hall of Fame inductee and 3x Grammy award winner who was nominated 13 times -- died December 12, 2020 from complications related to COVID-19 at the age of 86.

The legendary country singer held a part-ownership stake in the Rangers after joining a group that purchased the team in 2010.

Pride was a frequent visitor to the Texas Rangers Spring Training facility.

That should come as no surprise since Pride was a BALLER back in his day. Before deciding to pick up the microphone, he was a standout pitcher in the Negro Leagues in the 1950s and 1960s.

CP even had a couple of brief stints with the Yankees and Reds minor league squads ... before retiring from baseball and becoming a music superstar.

Pride sang the National Anthem in July 2020 at the Rangers Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas ... the first-ever baseball game at the field, and one of his last live performances.

Pride was such a talented and respected performer, he was honored during The Grammys on Sunday night in the "In Memoriam" segment.