TMZ Sports - Page 50

Las Vegas Raiders star Darren Waller says he was stunned by the news of Henry Ruggs' car crash last week -- calling the tragedy "shocking."

"Henry is somebody everybody liked," Waller said Sunday after the Raiders lost to the New York Giants -- Vegas' first game without Ruggs this season.

"Not just because he was the fastest person you've ever seen run on the field. But he was a good person and a respectful person."

Waller spoke with reporters for the first time since Ruggs was involved in a horrific wreck in Vegas last Tuesday ... and the tight end made it clear he and the rest of the Raiders were disappointed to not have Ruggs around the team anymore.

Waller called the 22-year-old "somebody you liked being around on a daily basis" ... and said Ruggs' situation -- coupled with the Jon Gruden email scandal earlier this year -- have taken a toll on the team.

"It is shocking," Waller said. "And it does hurt a little bit."

As we previously reported, Ruggs was cut by the Raiders just hours after he was accused of speeding and then slamming his Corvette into the back of Toyota -- killing a woman and her dog.

There's a simple solution for Zion Williamson's reported weight issues ... so says Kenny "The Jet" Smith, who tells TMZ Sports all the Pelicans star needs to do is focus and eat less.

Sounds easy enough, right??

There have been reports that the former #1 overall pick's weight has inflated to north of 300 pounds during the offseason as he battled an injury ... and even Kenny's "Inside The NBA" co-hosts Shaquille O'Neal and Charles Barkley have been joking about the situation.

But, when we spoke with Smith at LAX this week, we got real about Zion ... asking how he can shed the extra pounds and get back to game shape by the time he's back to 100%.

"Every player in their career... they're going to get hurt at some point if you have a long career," Kenny told us. "In that time, you gotta figure out how to stay in shape and stay into a basketball body."

Kenny says he's confident the 21-year-old will figure it out ... and it won't be as hard as people think.

"The easiest part is he'll figure out how to eat less. It's not hard when it's your profession. He puts the hours in to become a great basketball player. He'll figure out those hours he needs to keep his body right."

"It's not hard, just eat less."

We also talked to The Jet about Scottie Pippen's recent comments about Michael Jordan only making "The Last Dance" doc to prove to the youngins that he's still the G.O.A.T over LeBron James ... and he sets Pip straight.

Jake Paul went in hard on Zayn Malik Saturday night, calling him a d***head, adding he deserves everything that's coming to him.

Jake was in Vegas, and as he strolled through a hotel lobby he said of Zayn, "He's a f***ing lunatic. The guy's a complete asshole."

TMZ broke the story ... Zayn pled no contest to 4 counts of criminal harassment after he allegedly got into a screaming match with Yolanda Hadid and Gigi. Yolanda says Zayn pushed her into a dresser. He denies it.

Jake and Zayn have long-standing beef ... which began last year when they were both staying at the same Vegas hotel. We're told Jake asked if Zayn was going to party, and Zayn responded, "IDGAF if you have a good night." It went on from there, with Zayn allegedly screaming at Jake, "Who the f*** do you think you are?"

Dana White -- an absolute Las Vegas legend -- tells TMZ Sports moving to Sin City is not the reason for the Raiders' off-field woes ... explaining bad things happen in every major city.

The UFC honcho -- who's called Vegas home for years -- told us out in NYC this week he does not believe moving from Oakland to Nevada has contributed to the problems with the Raiders.

"People are going to make mistakes," White said, "and bad things happen every day, no matter what city you're in."

Dana's not wrong -- but the Raiders have had more notable issues than any team since they made the trek from NorCal to Vegas before the 2020 season.

Star running back, Josh Jacobs, was arrested and charged with DUI in January. Star receiver, Henry Ruggs, was hit with a DUI charge after a fatal car crash this week. And, cornerback, Damon Arnette, has been accused of injuring a woman in a 2020 car crash as well.

White does admit Vegas "is a rough city" to try to keep your nose clean in ... but he still believes there are more places in the U.S. that players can find similar trouble in.

"Listen, Vegas is a tough city and so is L.A.," White said. "Go spend a weekend in L.A. It's the same thing. It is what it is."

If Shawne Merriman were running the New Orleans Saints ... he tells TMZ Sports he'd sign Philip Rivers ASAP -- guaranteeing the QB is ready to play in the NFL today.

"One thing I know about Philip," said Merriman, who played with the quarterback in San Diego for years, "he's been tossin' the rock. There's no rust there."

Rivers has been linked to New Orleans after Jameis Winston tore his ACL in the Saints' game against the Buccaneers ... with the ex-Chargers QB saying this week he'd consider coming out of retirement if Sean Payton called.

But, the Saints headman said his team was going to be sticking with the signal-callers already on its roster for at least the immediate future ... something that Merriman clearly thinks is a mistake.

"He's in shape, he's ready to go," Merriman said of Rivers. "If the Saints are smart, the Saints will pick him up."

Rivers hasn't played a snap in the NFL since losing a playoff game to Buffalo last January ... but he has stuck around the game -- coaching high school football in Alabama.

And, Merriman says that gig has no doubt kept him ready for an NFL return if and when the Saints or anyone else calls.

"The truth of the matter is," Merriman said, "Philip has taken really good care of his body."

If this is Lou Williams' last year in the NBA, a big music career could be part of his retirement plan ... 'cause rapper 2KBABY tells TMZ Sports he's spent hours in the studio with the hooper -- and they have a bunch of songs ready to drop!!!

The 35-year-old Atlanta Hawks guard recently spoke out about his future in the league ... saying 2021-22 could very well be the last time we see Lou Will on the court.

Of course, Williams has dropped music in the past -- he even has a tribute track to the late Kobe Bryant -- but 2KBABY says there's much more on the way ... and he knows that because he's on the tracks!!!

"Shoutout Lou Williams, though," the "Luigi" rapper told us in L.A. this week. "That's my n****, bro. Me and Lou, we locked into the studio when I was in Atlanta."

"Me and Lou got some tracks."

Okay, so they have some songs together ... but is the 3-time 6th Man of the Year any good?!? 2KBABY says hell yeah -- "Lou can spit!!!"

Ron Artest III just revealed to TMZ Sports that he had a pair of Kobe Bryant game-worn kicks ... and instead of keeping them safe and sound, he used 'em to play ball.

... and, completely destroyed them!!!

The 22-year-old hooper -- and son of ex-NBA's Ron Artest aka Metta Sandiford-Artest -- says he's a huge Bryant fan and even mimics his moves on the court.

And, you would think, with his dad being Bryant's former teammate, that he got exclusive workouts with the late Hall of Famer -- but that's not the case.

"I seen Kobe a lot like in the practice facilities and the games," the 6-foot-7 forward tells us, "but I was always scared to go up and talk to him. So, I never really went to talk to him."

Artest did get something else, though ... a pair of Kobe's game-worn sneakers that he ended up destroying playing basketball!

Here's what happened ... "One time after a game, I was sitting outside of the locker room and he walked in. A security guard came out and gave me the shoes he just wore."

"As soon as I got those shoes, the next day I went to the court and started playing with them and just tore 'em up."

Artest added, "Instead of trying to hold on to them, I was like nah, I'm playing in it."

"Game-worn shoes. I felt like 'Like Mike' -- the movie. I played in 'em and tore 'em up."

Hopefully, when the free agent from Cal State Univ. signs to a team, he won't ruin any more Kobe's -- or any sneakers for that matter.

Canelo Alvarez says this fight is different than his previous 59 ... 'cause he's got legit bad blood with Caleb Plant, and he tells TMZ Sports he's gunning to really hurt his undefeated opponent.

We talked to the 31-year-old top pound-for-pound fighter in the world just days before his fight against the 29-year-old, 21-0 boxer ... and asked him if he had anger or animosity towards Plant after the men got into it at a recent media event.

“Yes, for sure it's more personal for me. But, I'm gonna use that in my favor. I'm gonna put all my skills, my experience to win this fight in a good way.”

We asked ... do you want to hurt him more after what went down?

"Yes, I'm gonna enjoy that,” Canelo responded.

We also asked how Alvarez predicted the fight would turn out.

"What I see is that it's gonna be difficult the first few rounds, then I'm gonna start doing my fight like always."

In case you missed it, Canelo and Caleb literally came to blows at a Beverly Hills promotional event in September ... with Alvarez opening up a substantial cut on Plants' face.

So yeah, the beef's real for Alvarez.

We also talked to Plant ... and we asked him a similar question.

Caleb tried to downplay the incident ... but eventually admitted he might want to put Canelo down just a bit more after the scrap in L.A.

Shawn Rhoden, bodybuilding star and former Mr. Olympia champion, has died at the age of 46 years old following a reported fatal heart attack.

Rhoden was one of the biggest stars in the bodybuilding world, winning the Olympia in 2018 -- the Super Bowl of bodybuilding competitions -- defeating 7x Olympia champ, the legendary Phil Heath, who'd won 7 straight years.

Shawn was 43 years old at the time, making him the oldest to ever win the prestigious title.

According to Generation Iron, Rhoden suffered a heart attack that sadly took his life.

Shawn first got into bodybuilding as an amateur in the early 90s ... where he competed on and off over the years. In 2010 Rhoden turned pro, finishing in a respectable 11th place at his first Mr. Olympia.

Rhoden returned the following year, making a huge jump, finishing 3rd ... before ultimately winning outright in 2018.

The bodybuilder wasn't without controversy ... in 2019, he was accused of sexually assaulting a female bodybuilder in Utah in 2018. Rhoden was never convicted of a crime associated with the alleged incident.

Rhoden last posted on social media 3 days ago, writing what now seems like an eerie caption ... "Brick by brick and patience it will take. See you on the other side."

The fitness world has also flooded social media with an outpouring of love for the late bodybuilder.

Legendary bodybuilder Rich Gaspari wrote ... "I am shocked to hear of the passing of Mr. Olympia @flexatronrhoden It's very sad to hear of his passing. He had always been a gentleman towards me. Shawn had one of the most aesthetic physiques in bodybuilding. My condolences to his family. #rip #ripbrother"

YouTube star Bradley Martyn added ... "Such a kind soul. Rest In Peace."

Dana White believes Kamaru Usman will cement himself as the greatest welterweight of all time ... with one more win over Colby Covington.

TMZ Sports talked to the UFC honcho just days before UFC 268 ... headlined by Usman vs. Covington, a rematch of their incredible 2019 scrap -- a fight Kamaru won via 5th round knockout.

"Usman is in a place right now where he's the pound-for-pound best fighter in the world. He's arguably right now the greatest welterweight of all time. He's already lapping guys, he's coming back and fighting guys for a second time," White said of Usman's legacy.

A few of the career attributes Dana listed ... undefeated in the UFC (14-0), won The Ultimate Fighter, longest win streak in welterweight history, least time on the bottom in UFC history, highest takedown defense in UFC history, to name a few.

And, Dana believes Usman could actually go down as the greatest MMA fighter ever.

"Colby Covington is a badass. He's very, very good. And, Usman beating him again will probably solidify him as the greatest welterweight ever, and yes, creeping up on G.O.A.T. status."

But, in order to do that, Kamaru must first beat Colby, the #1 contender, at UFC 268 Saturday night.

Baron Davis seems to believe the troubling allegations against Robert Sarver are true ... 'cause the ex-NBA star tells TMZ Sports he thinks the Suns owner "is a piece of s***."

The former Golden State Warriors guard said he sat next to the 60-year-old at some point during the NBA lockout in 2011 ... and he clearly got a bad vibe from the dude.

"Are you surprised?" Davis said out at LAX on Friday of the racist and misogynistic accusations against Sarver. "God damn, man. Look at that motherf***er."

Sarver has been accused of using the N-word on multiple occasions over the course of his 17 years with the Suns, according to ESPN, and he was also allegedly sexist with employees and others as well.

Sarver has vehemently denied most of the claims against him ... though he did admit to using the N-word one time "many years ago."

When we asked Davis about it all on Friday -- you can see in the clip, the former hooper really despises the guy.

"I don't care about that man," said Davis, who didn't want to go into detail about his interactions with Sarver. "He's a piece of s***."

Davis certainly seems like he wants to say more ... but tells us he's keeping it for his "Who Got Game" podcast.

Canelo Alvarez vs. Kamaru Usman is the boxing match combat sports fans will NOT be seeing ... 'cause the world's top pound for pound pugilist tells TMZ Sports he just ain't interested in the fight.

"I don't see. It doesn't make sense for me. I want to make history in boxing, and I don't see anything right there," Canelo says.

Of course, 34-year-old Usman made news this week when he said he was interested in boxing 31-year-old Alvarez down the line ... something his manager Ali Abdelaziz has previously told us. Kamaru also talked to Joe Rogan about the possible fight last year.

"I think that's something that [would be] the biggest ever in history," Usman said of a fight with Canelo at UFC 268 media day.

"That's what I'm looking to do. That's something that scares me. That's something that gets me up in the morning. That's something that I might risk leaving my daughter for another 12 weeks for."

FYI, both men will be in action this Saturday night. Usman is rematching Colby Covington at UFC 268 (there first fight was legendary) ... and Alvarez is fighting undefeated boxer Caleb Plant. Alvarez and Plant literally came to blows at a media event a few weeks ago.

Now, this isn't Conor McGregor vs. Floyd Mayweather ... in that there isn't any trash talk or bad blood between the two top fighters.

In fact, the Nigerian Nightmare was very complimentary of the Mexican champ.

"He's a master of his craft," Usman said.

"[Canelo's] used to these boxers. He's used to the boxing speed and the boxing movements and things like that. We're different. Sometimes different can be good. What's wrong with giving him a different look? Of course, it's a tall tree to climb, but we saw what happened the last time I was the underdog."

As for the legacy that Alvarez is building ... we asked him if he believed he could do enough to one day go down as the greatest boxer of all-time.

"I don't know, we'll see. We'll look at my number, and we'll see."

Ex-NBA star Kenyon Martin says watching Carmelo Anthony play against his son, Kenyon Martin Jr., was dope -- telling TMZ Sports it's a testament to Melo's longevity.

Melo recently went toe-to-toe with his former teammate's son, KJ, when the Lakers played the Houston Rockets on Sunday and Tuesday.

The Lakers star said it was a special moment ... and, when we asked Martin how he felt a few days after, he says it was awesome, but odd at the same time -- praising Melo for still ballin' in the NBA at 37.

"It was dope," the 43-year-old tells us, "Strange feeling at first but testament to Melo for one."

"His longevity in his craft. Still playing at a high level."

Martin also gives kudos to his 20-year-old son -- from being a 3-star guard at Sierra Canyon to being selected in the 2020 NBA Draft.

"Childhood dream of his to play in the NBA," Martin said of KJ, "We here man and enjoying every minute of it!"

Of course, Martin played power forward for 15 season with the Nets, Clippers, Nuggets, Knicks and Bucks -- and made the All-Star team in his 4th year.

So, we asked if this will be a "like father, like son" situation for KJ's All-Star chances ... Martin tells us a long and healthy career is way more valuable than getting that recognition.

"Listen, being All-Star is great. Having a long, long career -- a healthy career I think is better than being All-Star. For you to play 15, 16, 17 years in the league is better.

"I played 15, able to be All-Star one year but it doesn't make or break your career."

Aljamain Sterling isn't lookin' to sit around much longer ... 'cause the polarizing champ tells TMZ Sports he informed the UFC he'll be ready to fight Petr Yan in January or February.

"I texted the matchmaker right after that fight happened and I said January or February. Let me know."

Of course, Sterling and Yan fought for the first time in March 2021 ... a fight that ended in controversy when the Russian fighter was disqualified after he blasted Aljo with an illegal knee in the 4th round. Aljamain was losing the fight at the time ... and looked out of gas.

However, the DQ meant Aljo was declared the winner -- making him the champion --  something that didn't sit right with some MMA fans who thought he faked the injury.

(FWIW, Aljamain clearly ate a hard illegal knee directly to the head.)

We also asked Sterling about Yan's perceived invincibility ... but Aljo says he's just a man, and Sandhagen proved it.

"I think Cory Sandhagen showed that the guy can bleed. Know what I mean? He went 5 rounds with a guy I dispatched in 88 seconds," Sterling says.

Of course, Aljo beat Sandhagen via rear-naked choke in the first round of their June 2020 fight.

Aljamain is doing a little MMA math to illustrate why he can beat Petr.

FYI, Sterling hasn't fought since the Yan fight. He's been recovering after having surgery for a herniated disc in his neck.

Kamaru Usman has ONLY lost 1 time in his historic MMA career ... and the only man to beat him, fighter Jose Caceres, says the Nigerian Nightmare can't, won't, lose to Colby Covington.

34-year-old Caceres faced Kamaru in 2013 ... beating the now champ via a rear-naked choke in the 1st round (it must be said -- this was Usman's 2nd pro fight).

Jose also happened to fight Covington ... losing to Colby, also in 2013, via unanimous decision.

But, even though he beat Usman and lost to Covington, Caceres says he knows who's gonna win when the men do battle again at UFC 268.

"That kid has the most chances of winning. I look at it like the human body. He's really developed like the anti-virus, the vaccine for Colby Covington. He kinda already knows how to beat him. He already experienced 5 rounds of him," Caceres says.

Of course, Kamaru and Colby fought in 2019 -- an amazing fight -- won by KU via 5th round TKO.

Now the men are about to scrap again ... and the question is, will Jose remain the only man to take down the Nigerian Nightmare??

Henry Ruggs is now facing FIVE total charges stemming from his fatal car crash this week ... including four felonies, TMZ Sports has learned.

Court records show the former Las Vegas Raiders star has been hit with DUI resulting in death, DUI resulting in substantial bodily harm (presumably for the injuries caused to his GF, the passenger), and two reckless driving charges -- all felonies.

Ruggs was also hit Friday with a misdemeanor charge of possessing a gun under the influence of alcohol.

If convicted on all counts, prosecutors say Ruggs is facing up to 46 years behind bars.

As we previously reported, Ruggs is accused of speeding in his Corvette while drunk on Tuesday morning in Las Vegas ... all while carrying a loaded gun in his car.

Officials say Ruggs reached a speed of 156 MPH ... and eventually slammed into the back of a Toyota at 127 MPH -- killing a woman and her dog.

In video, obtained by TMZ Sports, you can see in the moments after the crash, Ruggs was swearing and sobbing just feet away from the wreckage.

Ruggs ultimately showed up to court on Wednesday in a neck brace and a wheelchair -- though he did not enter a plea.