TMZ Sports - Page 50

Even NBA MVPs can't get enough of Harry Styles ... 'cause Giannis Antetokounmpo was among thousands of super fans hitting up the singer's concert in Milwaukee on Wednesday -- and he was loving every second of it!!

"I just went to @Harry_Styles concert and it was 99% women and me 😂," Giannis tweeted after the show. "I’m a big fan, what a great performer."

The concert took place at the Fiserv Forum, where Giannis routinely dunks on his opponents night in and night out ... but this time, #34 was there to catch some sounds and enjoy the vibe from the superstar musician.

In the video, you can see the Greek Freak in what appears to be a suite ... nodding his head and smiling as the packed crowd below had all eyes on Styles belting out "Watermelon Sugar."

BTW, Giannis is as big of a fan as they come ... he's previously been on Instagram Live jamming to some One Direction … singing his out heart out to "Best Song Ever."

Phoenix Suns co-owner Robert Sarver is being accused of using the N-word on multiple occasions over the course of his 17 years with the team ... but he's denying all but one claim made against him.

ESPN just released a lengthy report on Sarver's tenure with the Suns organization ... with several sources accusing the 60-year-old of racism, sexism and misogyny.

Earl Watson -- who was head coach of the Suns from 2016-17 -- claims Sarver hurled the slur multiple times after a game against the Golden State Warriors ... saying, "You know, why does Draymond Green get to run up the court and say [N-word]?"

The ex-NBAer says he fired back at Sarver by explaining he's not allowed to use the word ... to which Sarver replied, "Why? Draymond Green says [N-word]."

While Watson claims he said the word, Sarver says he actually used the phrase "N-word."

Sarver adamantly denies calling or referring to anyone as the racial slur ... saying, "It is abhorrent and ugly and denigrating and against everything I believe in."

Sarver -- who also co-owns the Phoenix Mercury -- does admit using the word "many years ago" ... claiming he was responding to a player while discussing team chemistry.

"An assistant coach approached me a short time after and told me that I shouldn't say the word, even if I were quoting someone else," Sarver told the outlet.

In a 2004 meeting that included Steve Nash, Amar'e Stoudemire, agents and other staffers, Sarver allegedly said the term "black guy" loosely, which employees believed came off as racially insensitive.

6 other staffers claim Sarver also used the N-word when sharing stories relayed by a black player.

There's more -- an executive claims Sarver explained his decision to hire Lindsey Hunter as head coach over Dan Majerle back in 2013 by saying, "The N-words need an N-word."

Watson also says Sarver mentioned race while asking him to cut ties with Rich Paul's Klutch Sports amid contract negotiations with player Eric Bledsoe ... claiming he said, "Yeah, I understand what race you two are. So I'm asking you, How bad do you want your job?"

Watson claims to have responded -- "You can do whatever you want. You own this team, but my culture is not for sale. And, I'm not for sale."

As for Sarver, he says his issues with Klutch were due to a conflict of interest and not race. Watson was later fired 3 games into the 2017-18 season.

The report claims Sarver told a pregnant employee in 2008 she would not be able to do her job because she would be at home breastfeeding all day ... but Suns management rebuked Sarver's wishes and did not fire the woman due to fear of discrimination.

Sarver is also accused of showing employees pictures of his wife in a bikini ... which he claims was meant to show off team-branded swimsuits that were recently approved for sale.

There's more -- Sarver is admitting to pulling down an accounting exec's pants in front of fellow employees during an ALS Ice Bucket Challenge back in 2014, which he regrets.

Sarver also allegedly made comments to staffers about shaving their private parts, NBA players getting strippers pregnant and female employees crying too much.

Others claim Sarver discussed receiving oral sex from his wife, needing to wear extra-sized condoms, and asking players about their sex lives ... which he's denied.

As one employee put the working environment under Sarver ... "If the commissioner comes in and investigates to see what the f*** is going on in Phoenix, [he] would be appalled."

Nick Saban is pleading with his team to learn from the Henry Ruggs tragedy ... explaining to reporters he hopes the car crash reinforces to Alabama players to "make good choices."

"I think this is something that a lot of folks can learn from -- I think a lot of players on our team," said Saban, who coached Ruggs from 2017 to 2019 at 'Bama.

"When we say challenge people to make good choices and decisions -- do the right thing. Because sometimes the consequences can be devastating. And these consequences are going to probably be pretty devastating to Henry."

Saban said he and the rest of the Alabama football team are still supporting Henry -- despite allegations that the former Raiders star drove at 156 MPH with a BAC of .161 before crashing into and killing a woman and her dog in Las Vegas on Tuesday morning.

"We love him," Saban said of Ruggs. "We're going to support him through it. But we also have a lot of compassion for the victims and our thoughts and prayers are also with them."

Ruggs was a star for Saban at Alabama, piling up 1,716 receiving yards and 24 touchdowns in three seasons. He was eventually picked by Las Vegas in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft.

Ruggs, though, was released by the Raiders following the car crash Tuesday.

Swae Lee got an extra bonus after Anthony Davis gave him his jersey after Tuesday's game ... literally getting the Lakers superstar's DNA in the exchange after getting his bloody threads!!

It went down after the Lakers beat the Houston Rockets in the Staples Center, 119-117.

Davis -- who had 27 points, 9 rebounds and 3 assists -- saw the one-half of rap duo Rae Sremmurd sitting courtside and decided to show love by offering his game-worn #3 jersey.

But, before he handed it over, he warned the 28-year-old rapper the jersey had his blood, sweat and tears on it ... literally!!

"It got blood on it!" Davis said.

Swae didn't care one bit -- he was actually super hyped about it saying, "even better!!!"

He even gave a close-up of the genetic evidence ... revealing the bloodstains on the #3 Lakers gear on his IG.

"Man, that s*** make it more worth even more. Make it mean even more. Y'all boys put y'all heart into that s***, man," Swae said.

"Blood, sweat and tears. Lakers baby!"

This ain't Swae's only Davis jersey -- he rocked one while celebrating the Lakers' 2020 championship last October.

Henry Ruggs sat near a sidewalk just feet away from the Toyota engulfed in flames -- which killed a woman and her dog -- and he and his girlfriend swore and sobbed ... in this new video, obtained by TMZ Sports.

Just seconds after the former Raiders star slammed his Corvette into the back of a Rav4 at around 3:40 AM in Las Vegas ... footage shows Ruggs and Kiara Washington locked in a hug on the ground. In the clip, you can hear parts of their emotional conversation.

"OK. OK, here," she told Ruggs as she grabbed his face. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry."

He responded, "F***!!! Stop yelling!!!"

Video later shows one witness, who had arrived just minutes after the crash, telling an officer, "That's Henry Ruggs right here. That's Henry Ruggs right here. He plays for the Raiders."

The woman holding Ruggs then was sent into a panic -- as Ruggs appeared to drift in and out of consciousness in her arms.

"Can we get help?!?" the woman yelled. "Can you please help him!?!" He is knocked unconscious!"

Ruggs then seemed to come to -- and you can hear in the video, he began crying and sobbing as his girlfriend still held his head.

As we previously reported, cops say Ruggs showed signs of impairment at the scene when they interrogated him -- and, after being checked out at a local hospital, he was arrested and booked on charges of DUI and reckless driving.

In police documents, cops say he was going 156 MPH just before the crash ... and ultimately hit the Toyota at 127 MPH. Prosecutors later said bloodwork showed he had a BAC of .161 -- more than two times the legal limit of .08.

They added the 22-year-old also had a gun in the Corvette.

Ruggs -- who was released by the Raiders after the wreck -- showed up for a hearing on the matter in court on Wednesday in a neck brace and a wheelchair ... and later posted $150,000 bond.

Chris Rock's making it clear where he stands in the vaxx/anti-vaxx debate by taking a big swipe at Kyrie Irving ... and he did it in a prime location.

Chris was onstage Wednesday night in Brooklyn along with a bunch of bands and comedians performing at an NFT Week event when he hyped up the crowd by calling out anti-vaxxers. He eased into it with a joke about wearing face masks at concerts, and then simply asked, "Where's my anti-vaxxers at?"

Oddly, the question actually drew some cheers -- NYC requires vaccinations to attend shows like this -- and then Rock hit 'em with ... "You dumb, Kyrie motherf******!!!"

Chris was just a few miles away from Barclays Center, where Kyrie will NOT be playing this season for his Brooklyn Nets -- but his joke still scored laughs from the hometown crowd. Remember, Chris is from Brooklyn ... but he's still a diehard Knicks fan.

Lil Baby, Questlove, Aziz Ansari, and Rich the Kid were some of the other performers -- and after Chris took his shot at Kyrie Irving, he introduced The Strokes.

UCLA is vowing to take disciplinary action against Bruins defensive lineman Jay Toia ... after the 6'3", 325-pounder was captured on video threatening to slap a woman on an elevator last weekend.

The video made rounds earlier this week ... appearing to show the freshman approach an elevator on campus full of students he thought were from USC.

Toia -- donning a UCLA hoodie -- had to be held back by his friends as he goes on an expletive-filled rant threatening to hurt any USC student.

One girl tries to clear the air, saying "we go to Santa Barbara! Nobody's a Trojan! We go to USCB!"

Toia still goes off ... yelling, "you a f***ing Trojan n****! I'll slap a b****, too! I'll slap a b****!"

Worth noting -- the 4-star recruit signed with the Trojans back in Dec. 2020 ... before transferring to UCLA this June. He was the 21st ranked defensive tackle in his class and had offers from Arizona, Cal, Michigan, Nebraska and more.

UCLA's athletic director, Martin Jarmond, and football head coach, Chip Kelly, released a statement saying they saw the clip and Toia will be disciplined.

"We're aware of a recent video in which a student-athlete made disparaging remarks. This was inappropriate and not in line with our values and expectations."

"As such, we are taking disciplinary action and working with campus partners to assist with educations for the student."

Toia already lost an NIL deal with college apparel company Campus Mogul due to the video ... but has been practicing with the team all week.

Odell Beckham ain't getting targets in games, and he certainly wasn't getting any on Wednesday ... 'cause the Browns just reportedly "excused" him from team practice, despite being ready to go.

The drama surrounding Odell has hit an all-time high this week ... with his own father ripping Baker Mayfield for consistently refusing to throw the ball to Beckham.

There have been talks OBJ could have been traded prior to Tuesday's trade deadline ... but the Browns couldn't find a deal worth their time, which might've made things a bit awkward in Berea.

The team officially ruled Odell a DNP for Wednesday's practice, citing a non-injury-related personal matter, as well as his lingering shoulder injury ... but given all the talk surrounding his status with the team, it's certainly interesting.

It's no secret, the Browns have been struggling this season -- they're currently 4-4 and dealing with a number of injuries ... and all the issues with Odell isn't making it any better.

Beckham has 17 receptions for 232 yards this season ... and ya gotta wonder how much longer the Odell experiment in Cleveland will last.

Aaron Carter is about to be a first-time father -- a baby that’s due any day now, and the kid's name will honor Aaron's relationship with Michael Jackson.

The singer tells TMZ ... his fiancée, Melanie Martin, has been expecting a baby boy for quite some time now. Her due date is Nov. 18, but he says they're ready for her to pop anytime between now and then.

Aaron says they've already decided the kid's name will be Prince Lyric Carter, which is a nod to MJ.

As you probably know, Aaron and Michael were close ... and he tells us the King of Pop -- who he considered a friend and mentor -- used to call him the Prince of Pop. Sooo, there ya go.

Anyhow, the young Prince-to-be might be arriving via c-section because of some high-risk factors for Melanie. We're told she has anemia and ulcerative colitis, plus the baby was in breech position -- feet first -- for the first 6 months of the pregnancy ... but he's back in a normal position now.

The couple says they're nervous, but mostly thrilled for Prince's arrival ... especially after Melanie suffered a miscarriage last year.

A shot at a Titans Super Bowl title did not end when Derrick Henry got injured Sunday ... so says Chris Johnson, who tells TMZ Sports Tennessee is still "the team to beat."

Of course, most disagree with CJ2K ... considering Henry -- who's expected to miss the rest of the season after foot surgery Tuesday -- was the leading rusher in the league and by far the Titans' best player before his injury.

But, Johnson says he doesn't expect a dip at all from the Titans going forward ... saying there's just too many playmakers on the roster to allow that to happen.

"We got a good quarterback," the ex-Titans star said. "We got two good receivers out there. So we should be all right."

Johnson tells us he expects to see Tennessee turn into more of a passing team ... though he did say he's confident if the team needs to rely on the newly signed Adrian Peterson, it can do that as well.

"Adrian's been able to show that he's been able to come in and can contribute to whatever team that he goes to," Johnson said.

The former running back explained a Titans' Super Bowl run is still more than possible ... and even delivered an uplifting message to downtrodden Tennessee fans.

The first game without Henry is slated for Sunday night against the Rams -- who, by the way, just added Von Miller to the roster this week.

A group of high school students in Penn. have now been banned from attending hockey games this season after they chanted "suck our d***" and "she's a w****" at a female goalie during a match last week.

The deplorable moments all went down when Mars Area H.S. took on Armstrong H.S. at Belmont Sports Complex near Kittanning on Thursday ... when several students decided to hurl vile words at the Mars goalie.

In a video from the game, the chants can be heard loud and clear -- and the footage shows they lasted for several seconds each.

In an interview with Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Mars coach Steve Meyers said his players heard the words from ice level -- and they actually left his goalie in tears.

After the game, Armstrong principal Kirk Lorigan said he was "appalled" by the actions of his students ... and took swift action against them, banning the entire student body from attending future games this year.

Lorigan added that he and other school officials are working to identify individual students who participated in the chants at the game ... intimating further punishment could be on the way at the conclusion of the probe.

"It's certainly an unfortunate and embarrassing situation," Lorigan said ... "I'm disgusted by it."

Lorigan also said he's apologized to Mars and their goalie over it all.

Tua Tagovailoa -- who won a national championship alongside Henry Ruggs at Alabama -- choked back tears as he addressed his ex-teammate's fatal DUI arrest after practice Wednesday ... saying, "You’d never think that this guy could hurt a soul."

The Miami Dolphins quarterback appeared emotional and upset over the tragedy ... sharing his condolences to those close to the 23-year-old woman who died as a result of the crash.

"That’s tough," Tua told reporters. "My heart goes out to the families affected by what happened, the choices and decisions."

"My heart goes out to Henry, too, and his family. Obviously, it wasn't the right choice or decision he made at that time. I know he'd wish he could have it back."

He added ... "When I heard the news, that was tough for me to hear, just knowing the kind of person that Henry is ... I'm still kind of in disbelief."

Tua and Ruggs were very close in Tuscaloosa from 2017-19 and have remained tight as pros in the NFL ... and it's clear he's been hit hard by the news.

TMZ Sports broke the story -- officials say Ruggs was driving 156 miles per hour just seconds before the accident ... and had a BAC of .161.

The Las Vegas Raiders released Ruggs shortly after the crash ... and he could be facing serious time behind bars.

Henry Ruggs was traveling 156 MPH seconds before Tuesday's crash, slamming into the back of a Toyota at 127 MPH, with a blood alcohol level twice the legal limit, killing a 23-year-old woman, officials say.

Ruggs appeared in court this morning for the first time with a gash on his face, wearing a neck brace, to answer charges he caused the fatal car wreck in Las Vegas.

The details are disturbing. Officials, in new documents obtained by TMZ Sports, say they examined the computer in Ruggs' car and determined he was going incredibly fast just moments before he plowed into the Toyota.

Law enforcement said in the docs he was only able to slow to 127 MPH at the time of impact.

Officials says both Ruggs' car and the Toyota rolled over 500 feet after the initial impact ... where the Rav4 caught on fire.

In addition to the 23-year-old woman who perished, she also had a dog in the car that died.

Officers say Ruggs -- who appeared to be impaired at the scene -- refused to participate in field sobriety tests ... before he was eventually transported to the hospital.

Police say during an investigation following the crash, they located a gun in Ruggs' Corvette.

Officials added at Ruggs' hearing that bloodwork revealed the NFL player had a BAC of .161 -- more than two times the legal limit of .08.

Ruggs' injuries are unknown at this time -- though police did say the wounds were "serious" in documents. His mug shot shows the gash on his face was deep.

Ruggs has been charged with DUI resulting in substantial bodily harm, and reckless driving. His bail was set at $150,000.

The judge banned Ruggs from consuming alcohol ... and also ordered him to abstain from driving. He also must wear an electronic monitoring device as part of his bail.

At the hearing, the judge noted he'd never seen a case where the defendant was traveling at such a high rate of speed.

Jon Moxley is stepping away from the squared-circle to face his battle with addiction head-on -- the wrestling star is entering an inpatient alcohol treatment program.

AEW President Tony Khan made the announcement late Tuesday night ... saying the former WWE champion gave him permission to share the news.

"Jon is a beloved member of the AEW family," Khan said. "We all stand with him and (his wife) Renee, and all of his family and friends, as he shifts his focus to recovery."

"Jon is making a very brave choice to get help, and we’re embracing his choice and supporting him however we can."

Khan added ... "I’m proud to call Jon a friend, and like many of you, I’m also a fan of Mox and look forward to a time in the future when he is eventually ready to return to the ring."

Moxley -- known as Dean Ambrose from 2011 to 2019 -- joined AEW in 2019 ... winning the world championship.

Moxley recently opened up about his struggles with drugs in his new book ... saying he has experienced smoking crack.

He was slated for a big match against Orange Cassidy on Wednesday as part of the world title eliminator tournament.

The hits just keep on coming for the Saints -- 'cause just two days after the team lost quarterback Jameis Winston, it's now lost Michael Thomas too.

The star wide receiver -- who many at one point considered the best wideout in football -- announced Wednesday he's done for the season after suffering another setback with his ankle injury.

"To my displeasure," Thomas said in a statement on social media, "I will not be able to make it back in time for this season."

Thomas insinuated the injury -- which he initially suffered at the beginning of the 2020 season -- could need some kind of medical procedure, saying he and doctors "will have to address" the issue.

The 28-year-old, who signed a monster 5-year, $96 MILLION contract extension back in 2019, did vow to return as good as ever in 2022.

"I know God doesn't make mistakes so I will continue to follow in his path," Thomas said, "and I can't wait to be back on the field in front of the best fans on the planet."

Aaron Rodgers vs. Patrick Mahomes will now not happen -- at least not this week -- 'cause the Packers star has contracted coronavirus and is now out of Green Bay's game against the Chiefs.

Rodgers tested positive Wednesday, according to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero, and told teammates just minutes ago that he'd be missing Sunday's tilt with K.C.

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport added the quarterback is not vaccinated -- and that's why he's already been ruled out of the weekend matchup.

Much-hyped backup Jordan Love -- who the team took in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft -- is expected to start in Rodgers' place.

Rodgers hasn't missed a regular-season start for Green Bay since the 2017 season. In 8 games for this year, he piled up 16 passing TDs and just 6 INTs.

The Packers have been rocked by COVID recently ... just last week, they were without top wideouts Davante Adams and Allen Lazard due to positive tests.