TMZ Sports - Page 50

Deion Sanders, in perhaps the greatest piece of coaching in sports history, invited social media celeb Brittany Renner to speak to his Jackson State football team ... and it's everything you could've hoped for!

Primetime recruited Renner to "put his team up on game" ... in other words, it was an attempt to educate his players on the pitfalls of being a high-profile athlete.

"It's my responsibility as a Coach to prepare my young men for any and everything on the field and off," Sanders wrote on Instagram.

"I brought in @bundleofbrittany to educate them on how the game is played between man & woman at their age & stage. The message may not be for everybody but trust me it's for somebody. #CoachPrime @gojsutigersfb"

Sanders asked Renner to introduce herself, but a formal intro wasn't really needed, as it appeared most of the players immediately recognized her.

If you're not as familiar as the football team was with Brittany, she's famously dated a bunch of high-profile men over the years.

In fact, Renner was accused of preying on NBA player PJ Washington while he was a star at Kentucky, eventually giving birth to his baby.

Washington accused Renner of faking the relationship ... in an effort to get to his money.

Nevertheless, Renner -- who said everyone from rappers to NBA stars have slid in her DM's -- kept it real with the fellas ... emphasizing how careful they must be when you reach a certain status.

"You want to make it to the NFL, but there's a lot that comes with it," Renner said, "To be able to decipher who really loves you for you is the billion-dollar question."

After the meeting, Brittany reflected on her time at Jackson State ... and clearly believes it was a positive experience.

Aaron Rodgers is still takin' care of business during the Packers' bye week ... popping up at a renowned sports doctors office in Los Angeles, where he appeared to stay for nearly 3 hrs.

The Green Bay quarterback arrived at the Kerlan Jobe offices Friday morning ... where he was greeted by Dr. Neal ElAttrache in the parking lot.

FYI, Kerlan Jobe -- part of Cedars-Sinai -- is regarded as one of the leading sports medicine facilities in the world, and Dr. ElAttrache, one of the best docs.

In fact, he's worked on legendary athletes like Tom Brady, Tiger Woods and Conor McGregor.

It's unclear what Rodgers had checked out, or if he underwent any procedures while inside ... but it seems very likely he was there for his COVID fractured toe.

Rodgers previously explained the injury, even showing the pinky toe to reporters, in an effort to prove the injury was NOT related to having the virus.

Speaking of COVID, notice Rodgers pulled up his mask up as he walked with Dr. ElAttrache, towards the entrance of the facility. In California, masks are still required indoors.

As for the fractured toe, Aaron told Pat McAfee on Monday that he was still considering surgery on the digit, but preferred to let it heal naturally.

Carl Nassib -- the NFL's only openly gay player -- will be showing his support for the LGBTQ+ community on Sunday ... by wearing a pair of custom rainbow cleats.

The Raiders pass rusher -- who came out as gay earlier this year -- revealed the unique footwear this week ... announcing he'd be sporting the shoes for Las Vegas' matchup with the Washington Football Team.

If you're unfamiliar, the NFL is allowing teams to rock custom cleats in Week 13 to raise awareness and money for causes close to the players' hearts ... and Nassib is choosing to wear a pair with a rainbow design on them.

Nassib's cleats will also feature the words "The Trevor Project" in bold orange on the sides -- with "Protect LGBTQ+ lives" written on them as well.

The cleats will also feature the number to the suicide prevention lifeline -- 1-866-488-7386 -- for young LGBTQ+ people.

FYI -- The Trevor Project is the world's largest suicide prevention and crisis intervention organization for LGBTQ young people ... and it's a cause Nassib has had strong ties to ever since he came out back in June.

Nassib famously pledged to donate $100,000 to the org. after his announcement ... and he urged others to chip in as well.

Tom Brady might never throw another pass to Antonio Brown again -- 'cause Bruce Arians just announced the receiver's Bucs future is up in the air following his COVID vaccine card scandal.

The Tampa Bay head coach just broke the news to reporters ... saying Brown is not guaranteed a future spot on the Bucs' roster after the NFL suspended him for submitting a bogus vax card.

"Nothing's been decided," Arians said ... who added that he was "pissed" over the whole ordeal.

As we previously reported, Brown's personal chef accused the wideout of seeking and obtaining fraudulent vaccine cards, claiming Brown got them and submitted his fudged one to the league back in July.

Brown, through his attorney, Sean Burstyn, denied the claims ... though the NFL announced Thursday it found evidence that "supported" AB's chef's allegations.

The league banned Brown from playing in Tampa Bay's next three games over it all.

The NFL also hit Buccaneers safety Mike Edwards with a three-game suspension for "misrepresenting" his vaccine status as well ... and Arians said that player's future with the team is also up in the air.

"The league did their due diligence and we move on," Arians said. "I will not address those guys for the next three weeks. They'll just be working out and then we'll address their future at that time."

"Other than that, there's really nothing to say."

The Portland Trailblazers have fired general manager Neil Olshey almost a month after the team opened an investigation into toxic and hostile work allegations made by employees.

56-year-old Olshey -- who's been the GM since 2012 -- was accused back in November of bullying, intimidating and making expletive-filled rants towards staff members over his time with the team.

The Blazers immediately launched a private investigation into the allegations ... and a firm spoke with several employees on the abuse that is said to have led to "mental and physical stress."

After a review of the findings, the organization fired Olshey.

"The Portland Trail Blazers are committed to building an organization that positively impacts our colleagues, communities and the world in which we live and play," the org. said Friday.

"Following the conclusion of the independent review of concerns and complaints around our workplace environment at the practice facility, the Portland Trail Blazers organization has decided to terminate General Manager and President of Basketball Operations Neil Olshey, effective immediately due to violations of the Portland Trail Blazers’ Code of Conduct."

The team says they will not release any information on their investigation out of respect for those who came forward and look to make improvements in the office.

"We are confident that these changes will help build a more positive and respectful working environment."

Tyson Fury's beef with Deontay Wilder is over ... but his feud with Anthony Joshua is clearly still raging on -- 'cause the heavyweight champ shaded the hell out of the boxer with an "A.J. is a p***y!" song on Thursday.

The vulgar lyrics all went down in England at the O2 Apollo during Fury's meet-and-greet "Homecoming" Tour -- when the 33-year-old hilariously called out the 24-2 British boxer.

You can see in footage filmed by a fan in the stands, Fury jumped on stage and began singing "A.J. is a p***y" loudly.

And, it didn't take long for the rest of the arena to join in ... with everyone in the venue singing along with the pugilist!!

Of course, Fury was supposed to fight Joshua back on Aug. 14 in Saudi Arabia ... but the tilt was shut down when Wilder got a judge to rule in his favor that fury owed him a third fight due to a contract clause.

Fury went on to beat Deontay in an epic fight, but Joshua ended up losing his replacement match against Oleksandr Usyk on Sept. 25.

Joshua is set for a rematch with OU -- but Fury's actions on Thursday night show it's clear he eventually wants that scrap with A.J. to go down.

UFC fighter Geoff Neal was arrested on Thanksgiving after cops say he was drinking and driving with a firearm ... TMZ Sports has confirmed.

According to police records, Neal -- who's slated to fight at UFC 269 on Dec. 11 in Las Vegas -- was taken into custody at 3:47 AM on Nov. 25.

Details surrounding the stop are unclear -- we're working on it -- but records show Neal was booked on charges of driving while intoxicated and unlawfully carrying a weapon.

The records show the 31-year-old was eventually released from jail at 8:08 PM on Thanksgiving night.

Neal is set to scrap with Santiago Ponzinibbio, and, according to the UFC, the fight is still on despite the arrest.

"UFC is aware of the recent situation involving Geoff Neal," UFC officials said in a statement. "The organization has been in communication with him and is in the process of gathering more details. Neal's bout at UFC 269 on December 11th remains as scheduled."

Neal, meanwhile, has denied the allegations against him ... with his attorney telling ESPN this week that he believes bloodwork results will show the UFC fighter was not illegally drinking and driving.

"If it turns out he was not legally intoxicated -- which we expect the blood test will show -- there won't be a gun charge, either," said Brandon Barnett, who claims Neal legally had a licensed gun in his vehicle at the time of the arrest.

"I think it's somewhat premature to report on this at this point," Barnett added. "Doing what I do for a living, there's a lot of occasions where you see an arrest and then based on the evidence that comes back there's never even a case file."

Who said Brian Kelly wasn't a culture fit in Baton Rouge?!?

LSU's newest head coach -- who was born and raised in Massachusetts -- suddenly has the whole southern thing figured out ... showing off a shocking new accent while speaking with Tiger fans at a basketball game on Wednesday.

"It's a great day to be a Tiger," Kelly said ... sounding more like a guy raised on gumbo than New England clam chowder.

"I'm here with my family and we are so excited to be in the great state of Louisiana. But more importantly, to be with you great fans and to be part of what is going to be an incredible ride here at Louisiana State University."

Listen specifically to the words like "day" and "family" -- the speech had the internet on fire ... with some even digging for clips of Kelly earlier this week to compare.

The whole thing sounds like Frank Caliendo on a bad day ... but you can tell Kelly put a huge emphasis on not coming off like a guy who just spent the past 30-plus years in the Midwest -- even working on his cadence to really try to bring it home.

Tiger fans either haven't heard Kelly talk before or were simply too excited to have Coach in BR to care about the accent ... after all, the guy said he can't wait to start winning natty's.

"That's the standard, that's the expectation," he told the crowd. "We knew that coming in. We don't apologize for it. We know it's hard work. We know there's great teams in the SEC, we respect them. But, this is LSU. Geaux Tigers."

There are now TWO LeBron James offspring who can dunk a basketball ... 'cause the Lakers star's youngest son, Bryce, just rattled the rim for the first time on Thursday night!!

Just a couple years after Bronny -- LBJ's oldest boy -- accomplished the feat ... Bryce did it in warmups for Sierra Canyon H.S., and LeBron was fired up to see it.

The King had courtside seats for the big moment ... and cameras captured a big smile on his face after Bryce threw it down.

"Ayyyyeeeeeee!!!!!," said LeBron, who actually captured the dunk with his own cell phone camera. "Yo WTH man."

The dunk was pretty sweet -- Bryce took off on two feet and slammed the ball home with one hand. And, considering Bryce is just a 14-year-old freshman, it's likely the first of many.

Of course, Bronny is already killin' it a couple years after his first dunk -- he's considered one of the best recruits in the class of 2023 ... dunking the ball with ease and hearing from all of the top colleges.

Kemba Walker getting benched isn't his problem, it's his coach's ... so says Kenny "The Jet" Smith, who tells TMZ Sports the guard is a Ferrari and Tom Thibodeau doesn't know how to drive it.

The 31-year-old hooper was removed from the Knicks rotation earlier this week ... as he's been averaging career lows in almost every major category this season.

Once backup Alec Burks came in and balled out with 23 points against the Hawks on Saturday, Thibs decided to pull Walker out of the starting lineup AND the rotation altogether.

We spoke with Smith about Kemba's benching, considering he signed a 2-year, $20 million deal this past offseason ... and he says this is not a testament to Walker's skills.

"The guy's a great offensive player and you just don't know how to use him," Smith told us at LAX. "That's really what you're saying. You're not saying that he can't play."

Smith says Thibs just flat-out doesn't know how to use the baller ... and can be of use for a team that knows what to do with his talents.

"It's the coach and the organization just not understanding what value of a guy like this, what they paid for."

To put it in simpler terms, Smith has an analogy.

Senator Ted Cruz is blasting the NBA -- and heaping praise on the WTA -- for the stark difference in both sports leagues' approaches to human rights violations perpetrated by China.

"I’ll tell ya something right now," Cruz said, "The Women's Tennis Association has bigger balls than the NBA. And I'd like to see courage be contagious and more people stand up."

Cruz made the comments while discussing the vanishing of star tennis player Peng Shuai in an interview with the "Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show" on Thursday ... as top athletes and organizations across the country have demanded proof the star tennis is okay.

"The Women's Tennis Association has shown extraordinary courage, calling out the Chinese communist government. Demanding that Peng Shuai be released and she be free, and they’ve put their money where their mouth is."

Cruz went on to talk about the WTA canceling all events in China ... a move he estimates could cost them "millions or hundreds of millions of dollars."

That's when the senator unloaded on the National Basketball Association.

"The NBA groveled on their knees before the communist dictators. You had people like LeBron James defending the communist dictators who engage in murder and torture and run concentration camps."

Of course, Cruz is referring to the controversy ignited when then-Rockets GM Daryl Morey tweeted support for protestors in Hong Kong in 2019.

China was furious ... and Cruz believes the NBA caved to the country, prioritizing cash over human rights. Since Morey's comments, James has taken heat for his perceived failure to highlight serious issues in China.

As far as Peng ... she recently accused a powerful Chinese politician of sexually abusing her several years ago. Shortly after making the accusation on social media, the post was removed and Shuai seemingly disappeared.

In recent weeks many have accused China of trying to quell concern ... appearing to trot Peng out in front of cameras to prove she was in no danger.

A statement attributed to Peng was also released ... though many believe the writing to be highly suspicious.

Finally, Cruz said he was grateful for the WTA ... adding he'd like to see more people do the same.

Virgil Abloh's newest Nike collab has reportedly been postponed ... this, after the death of the beloved fashion designer.

The Off-White x Nike Blazer Low was originally set to release on Dec. 7 ... but now won't be available to purchase until later into 2022, according to Nike Kicks.

As we previously reported, Abloh -- the founder of Off-White and creative director of Louis Vuitton -- passed away after a private battle with cancer on Nov. 28.

Just hours after his death, a massive demand hit the resale market for the Off-White sneaker collection ... with over 40 pairs of the popular Air Jordan 1 "Chicago" Nike collab selling for prices ranging from $6,565 to $10,500 on StockX.

So far, no word on what will happen with the Off-White Air Force 1 Mid (expected to launch in 2022) or any of his unreleased work.

Abloh was the first Black American creative director at Louis Vuitton and was known for his amazing fashion sense -- especially in the sneaker culture -- creating some of best kicks in the game, like 'The Ten' collection.

The 41-year-old also designed Nike kicks for Serena Williams for her 2018 US Open.

"Since 2016, Virgil has been a beloved member of the Nike, Jordan and Converse family," Nike said in a statement after his death.

LeBron James is officially free of COVID -- the NBA announced he's logged multiple negative tests the past two days -- and he's now been cleared to play for the Lakers again.

LBJ had been placed in the NBA's health and safety protocols on Tuesday after he had recorded a positive coronavirus test -- and was forced to miss L.A.'s win over the Kings in Sacramento.

But, the league says the King has been testing negative and is now out of the protocols and will be eligible to play in the Lakers' next game against the Clippers on Friday night.

We broke the story, LeBron initially tested positive for COVID-19 just hours before the Lakers vs. Kings game using a lateral flow test. He then tested negative on a follow-up PCR test. We're told he was given a third, tiebreaker test which came back positive and he was sent home to L.A. from the Lakers' road trip in Northern California.

LeBron seemed to be upset over it all ... writing on his social media page on Wednesday, "Something is REAL [fish emojis] going on."

The NBA -- which has implemented a rule saying players who test positive must either sit out 10 days or submit at least two negative PCR tests before returning to game action -- revealed Thursday it believes LeBron's initial testing was a false positive ... adding, "he is not a positive case."

Sad news from Hercy Miller -- Master P's Tennessee State hoops star son is out for the rest of the year after suffering a season-ending injury.

The freshman guard made the announcement on Tuesday ... saying, "Due to a lower-body injury I'll be out for the '21-'22 season."

But, don't worry, Tigers fans ... the 19-year-old says he's already looking forward to his comeback campaign.

"I'll be back next year for the show! Stronger and better," he added.

The 6'3" guard averaged 10 minutes in 6 appearances for the Tigers ... scoring an overall total of 13 points. TSU is currently 1-5.

"THANK YOU, to all the fans," Miller said, "and everyone who supported me this season."

Miller -- who was a 3-start recruit from Minnehaha Academy -- picked the HBCU earlier this year over UCLA, LSU and other Power 5 programs.

As we previously reported, Hercy signed a multi-million dollar endorsement deal after the NIL policy change ... telling us in July, he learned from his dad.

"I signed a deal with an American technology company. Like my dad said, it's a blessing," Miller said.

"I learned from my dad, I'm gonna start off by giving back to the community and everyone around me."

Get well, soon!!!

The Lincoln Riley hire is already paying off for USC ... 'cause the Trojans just landed a commitment from the best H.S. running back in the country -- only four days after Riley accepted the head coaching job in L.A.

Raleek Brown -- a five-star recruit and the No. 1-ranked H.S. tailback in the nation, according to Rivals.com -- was originally committed to Oklahoma ... but after Riley left the Sooners for the Trojans, Brown announced Thursday he was following suit.

"Lincoln Riley, that's my guy," Brown told 247 Sports Thursday. "I was shocked he was leaving [Oklahoma] but then excited he was coming to USC."

"I've been up to USC a ton of times," Brown continued, "since before I even got to high school and I'm super familiar with it there. I have a strong comfort level at the school and a lot of family nearby so it's honestly a great situation for me.”

The commitment is a huge one for Riley ... 'cause Brown is a bonafide superstar who some have called the "next Reggie Bush."

In 10 games for Mater Dei H.S. in California this year, Brown's rushed for 1,062 yards and 12 touchdowns while averaging eight yards a carry.

Raleek's numbers would almost certainly be even more impressive had he not been forced to sit out the second half of a large number of games due to blowouts this season.

Brown is expected to officially sign his letter of intent later this month ... before joining the Trojans next season.

The NFL says Antonio Brown did, in fact, submit a bogus vaccine card to the league ... and officials just announced he's now been suspended three games over it all.

Brown's chef, Steven Ruiz, claimed last month that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers star had sought and then obtained the fraudulent paper back in July -- but Brown was adamant Ruiz was lying.

In a statement, Brown's attorney, Sean Burstyn, said the 33-year-old was vaccinated and did have proper paperwork ... adding, "Be like Antonio brown and get the vaccine."

But, the NFL said in a statement of its own on Thursday that after investigating the claims ... it found Brown did "misrepresent" his vaccine status, explaining their review "supported" the allegations made against AB.

The league said Brown has now been banned from playing for the next three games -- adding that Brown has "accepted the discipline" and will not appeal.

The NFL also revealed two other players -- Buccaneers safety Mike Edwards and former Tampa Bay receiver and current free agent John Franklin III -- also misrepresented their vaccine statuses and were also suspended three games.

Brown has been out of the Bucs' lineup since October while battling an ankle injury, but prior to that, he had been shining with Tom Brady -- scoring four receiving TDs in five games.