TMZ Sports - Page 42

Zion Williamson just got some fresh ink to prep for the start of the new year -- getting a giant cross tattooed on his chest!!

The NBA star hit up Onder Ink's Andres Ortega just a few weeks ago to get the piece done -- and as you can see, it came out awesome.

The tat features a cross with an image of a snarling gorilla inside of it -- and it appears to be strategically positioned more toward his heart.

Unclear what the exact significance of the image is for Williamson -- but Ortega tells TMZ Sports it all took about three hours during a session in New Orleans to complete.

It's, of course, been a busy few weeks for the Pelicans forward ... because outside of getting some permanent ink placed on his body -- he also helped welcome his baby into the world in November as well.

His recent play on the court has been the focus of many too -- as basketball pundits have criticized his weight and conditioning amid an up-and-down start to the NBA season.

Ja Morant's barely been back on the NBA hardwood for a week, but he's already found himself mired in a bit of controversy again -- this time after he hit a celebration that appeared to feature imaginary guns.

The Grizzlies point guard pulled out the celly Tuesday night after he helped give Memphis an insurmountable lead over the Pelicans in overtime of their game in New Orleans.

The 24-year-old -- who just came back from a 25-game ban for a string of incidents involving gun-related social media videos last week -- seemed to turn his hands into the shape of pistols after throwing down a thunderous alley-oop dunk, before he appeared to spray the road crowd with fake bullets.

The gestures only lasted a few seconds, before Morant returned to defense to finish off the game -- but basketball fans were still critical of the moves nonetheless.

Several roasted him as "tone deaf" -- particularly after he had just returned from his suspension on Dec. 19.

Of course, it's entirely possible Morant was not mimicking firing guns and was instead just simply hitting a dance -- but the hooper has yet to publicly address it all.

Talk about heartwarming for the holidays ... the former child stars of "The Sandlot" reunited in Florida to play a little ball, and raise money for charity while they were at it.

Fans of the film got to hang out with 'Sandlot' stars Marty York, Tom Guiry, Victor DiMattia, Shane Obedzinski and Grant Gelt for 2 days in New Smyrna Beach ... with movie screenings, meet and greets and a celebrity softball game to cap it all off.

The featured 'Sandlot' characters include Scotty Smalls, Alan 'Yeah-Yeah' McClennan, Bertram Grover Weeks, plus Tommy 'Repeat' Timmons and his twin brother Timmy. Pretty good squad, right?!?

The 2-day charity event followed the 30th anniversary of the iconic movie's release ... and proceeds benefitted Table 2 Committee, a nonprofit that raises money for local youth sports programs.

'Sandlot' writer, director and narrator David Mickey Evans organized the whole shebang ... and it looks like there was quite a turnout.

11-time Olympic medalist Allyson Felix says pregnancy is like a walk in the park this time around ... telling TMZ Sports she loves not having to worry about training or chaos!!

Of course, Felix became an advocate for maternal protections in women's sports after she lost sponsorship money during her first pregnancy ... leaving her feeling abandoned for having a kid on the way.

Now that she's retired from the sport, she is more at ease with the process ... especially since she doesn't have an early wakeup call.

"It's totally different," the track and field star said this week. "I wasn't dealing with all the drama from before."

"Now, yeah, I don't have to train at 4 o'clock in the morning and do all that crazy stuff so that part is good."

Felix, along with her husband, American sprinter Kenneth Ferguson, announced on Thanksgiving they are expecting their second child in April 2024 ... and the couple -- who married in 2018 --  are having a boy.

The new bundle of joy is five years after Felix's life-threatening experience with her first pregnancy ... when she had to get an emergency C-section following a development of pre-eclampsia at 32 weeks.

"I know a lot now and I kinda know the risks and everything that I experienced before," Felix said, "So, that part, you know, that part is better."

The traumatic incident motivated Felix -- who retired in 2022 -- to speak out for expecting black women, who research says deal with racial bias in the health care system.

She's also working hard on her shoe company Spaysh and being part of the IOC Athletes Commission to support track stars like herself.

Hollywood may be mostly glitz n' glam under the the Cali sun, but these athletic stars are gettin' down n' dirty in the winter snow! From snowboarding to snowmobiling, there's no winter sport these celebs are backing down from.

Busting out in their frosty attire, Devon Windsor snapped her way up the mountain, Camila Mendes made snowmobiling athletic but cute, and before shredding some gnar ... TikToker Jack Wright shared a shredded shirtless selfie on the snow tops!

Patrick Schwarzenegger and Abby Champion are finally engaged after 7 years of dating.

The longtime lovebirds posted a joint Instagram sharing the big news one day after Christmas with a series of photos showing the happy couple together.

In one picture, Patrick plants a big kiss on Abby's cheek, while posing next to a large red heart covered in roses on the beach.

What's more, Patrick and Abby went on a Christmas morning stroll, jumping on the phone to seemingly tell friends and family about their engagement. Abby was beaming with joy as she rocked her sparkling new engagement ring.

After the phone conversation, the two continued their walk wearing matching pajamas and were later photographed with Abby's parents, who joined in all the happiness.

Patrick and Abby were first seen together in September 2015, making their relationship Instagram official the following year. At the time, Abby posted a photo of them posing with their arms wrapped around each other.

Timothée Chalamet headed up a celebrity cast attending a Christmas Day Lakers game in Los Angeles ... but his girlfriend, Kylie Jenner, missed out on all the fun.

Chalamet sat courtside with his dad, Marc -- an editor at UNICEF -- and sports agent, Rich Paul, to watch the Lakers take a loss against the Boston Celtics 126-115 at L.A.'s Crypto.com Arena.

Kylie was nowhere in sight, but we're pretty she'll be present for Tim's 28th birthday tomorrow.

At some point, Chalamet had some car trouble in the parking lot ... the valet driver crashed his electric car into a wall, scraping the front driver side of the vehicle.

Meanwhile, a bunch of other notables also came out for the basketball game, namely three Lakers alums -- Lamar Odom, Trevor Ariza, Derek Fisher, along with Fisher's ex-reality star wife, Gloria Govan.

Also in the crowd were DJ Zack Bia, soccer star Eduardo Camavinga and Internet personalities Corinna Kopf and David Dobrik.

Last but definitely not least ... Kanye West popped up near the stadium and got hounded by fans wanting autographs and to take selfies with the rapper. But Kanye's security detail kept the people away from him.

Kanye West is apologizing -- in Hebrew -- for his antisemitic rants and his support for Hitler, this after his name was scribbled on an apparent Israeli missile being used in the war against Hamas.

The rapper wrote a lengthy statement Tuesday in an effort to his reactivated Instagram account, showing contrition for his offensive remarks to the Jewish people over the past year. Interestingly, Kanye expressed his remorse in the language of Judaism: Hebrew.

This is the entire translation of Kanye's message, "I sincerely apologize to the Jewish community for any unintended outburst caused by my words or actions, it was not my intention to hurt or disrespect, and I deeply regret any pain I may have caused."

Kanye continued, "I am committed to starting with myself and learning from this experience to ensure greater sensitivity and understanding in the future. Your forgiveness is important to me, and I am committed to making amends and promoting unity."

The words ... well, they sound more corporate than Kanye.

His apology comes after Israeli MMA fighter Haim Gozali posted a photo on X, showing a missile with the following message written on it: "Kanye West Flying to Gaza Haim Gozali."

Of course, Gozali was referring to the current Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip. He also wrote in the caption, "@kanyewest you don't like us jewish. So, we don't like you too."

Since 2022, Kanye has repeatedly ripped Jews in very public forums.

First, he went on social media and declared he was "going death con 3 On JEWISH PEOPLE." Then Kanye sat for a TV interview with Piers Morgan, saying he wished harm on Jewish people for doing him wrong in their music deals.

But it didn't stop there ... Kanye appeared on "Infowars" hosted by far-right conspiracy nut Alex Jones, while proclaiming, "I see good things about Hitler." He then spoke highly of the Nazis, stating, "They did good things, too. We have to stop dissing the Nazis all the time."

Kim Zolciak showered her kids with gifts for Christmas despite her financial hardships.

Sources close to Kim tell TMZ ... she pulled together the dough she's made selling personal items online over the last few months ... ensuring the 4 kids she shares with Kroy Biermann didn't go without Xmas presents this year.

We're told the estranged couple's brood will always be their priority ... and despite the heightened drama between them, they chose not to travel for the holidays and instead were at home for the holiday at their Georgia mansion.

We don't know exactly what gifts she bought, but it must've been a pretty decent haul ... cause K&K have been making some serious $$$ selling designer goods online.

Earlier this month, Kim gave the boot to Kroy's shoe collection, selling them alongside her footwear and handbags ... tempting potential buyers with big names from Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Valentino & more.

Of course, they decided to sell, sell, sell due to their mounting lawsuits over unpaid credit card bills.

They've also put their Georgia mansion on sale ... though they recently slashed the $6 mil price by $500K out of desperation.

NFL announcer Tony Romo may need some cue cards to remember the relationship status of Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce – 'cause he thinks they're married!!!

Here's what happened ... Romo was doing the play by play with fellow commentator, Jim Nantz, during the Kansas City Chiefs' 20-14 loss to the Las Vegas Raiders on Christmas Day. Taylor was back in her VIP suite for the game at Arrowhead Stadium cheering on Travis – her boyfriend, of course, and the Chief's tight end.

But, Romo got it all twisted when Taylor's image flashed on the TV screen, accidentally calling her Travis' WIFE!!

Check out the video posted on Instagram ... Taylor, wearing a Santa hat with Travis' number "87" on it, stands up to root for her beefy lover on the field.

Romo then blows it, but soon catches himself and corrects his mistake, saying, “And his wife loves it, I mean, girlfriend.”

Nantz doesn't let Romo off the hook, pointing out, “You’ve been down this road before."

Unfortunately, Romo has. While calling the Chiefs game against the Buffalo Bills last week -- Romo made the same boo-boo.

Once again, the camera panned on Taylor clapping in the audience when Romo said, "As you see, Kelce’s wife, Taylor Swift, in the audience." He caught his blunder there, too, quickly adding, "I'm sorry. Girlfriend!"

Another broadcaster quipped, "Not yet," while chuckling at Romo's gaffe.

Travis Kelce would be awwwweeeeesoooome in the squared-circle ... so says WWE Superstar The Miz, who tells TMZ Sports he'd love to see the Kansas City Chiefs superstar -- AND his brother, Jason -- take their talents to wrestling!!

Remember, we spoke with Travis back in April about possibly seeing him follow fellow tight end greats like Rob Gronkowski and George Kittle by getting into wrasslin' ... and he said he's already talked to Miz about making it happen.

Naturally, we had to ask Mike all about it when we caught up with him at LAX this week ... and while it doesn't sound like anything concrete just yet, it's clear he's put a lot of thought into it.

Miz -- who admitted he's blown up Travis' DMs over the subject -- said it would be perfect to see the Kelce bros team up for a special appearance at WrestleMania ... especially considering it'll be in Philadelphia, a city Jason is VERY familiar with.

Of course, Miz knows firsthand what it's like to go up against NFL stars -- he took on both Kittle and Pat McAfee at the same time at SoFi Stadium earlier this year.

Miz also feels like WWE could see a similar boost as Roger Goodell's org. if it happens ... thanks to the Taylor Swift effect.

Tyron Woodley has been open about wanting to fight Georges St-Pierre for years, going back to their UFC days ... and even though the guys are no longer with Dana White's organization, T-Wood still wants smoke with GSP!

In fact, TMZ Sports was talking to 41-year-old Woodley this week when he revealed that he has not only launched his own fight promotion (more on that coming), but he offered St-Pierre a crapload of money to scrap.

"Like Georges St-Pierre, I offered him a dumb bag, he said 'No. I'm not in that world anymore,'" Woodley revealed.

Tyron added ... "When I say dumb, I'm talking pushing the eight figures, a lot of money."

Eight figures indicates $10,000,000 ... a lot of money by any standard.

GSP last fought in 2017 ... when he returned after a four-year layoff to fight Michael Bisping. He won by submission (rear-naked choke) in the third round.

As for the promotion ... Tyron says it's not just about fighting.

"It's called The Realest International Promotion, TRIP. We're promoting all things art, we're not just doing mixed martial arts," Tyron explained, adding, "We're doing music, concerts, festivals, cryptocurrency, e-sporting events, boxing, and then we just doing a lot of crossovers."

There's a bunch more with Tyron ... including the former longtime welterweight champ's revelation that he, not John Gotti III, was originally scheduled to fight Floyd Mayweather in an exhibition boxing match earlier this year.

Kanye West's name was written onto an Israeli missile that's apparently going to be used in the war in the Middle East -- and a prominent MMA fighter is taking credit for the stunt.

A photo was posted Sunday by Haim Gozali, an Israeli mixed-martial artist who was once affiliated with Bellator -- and who's been very outspoken on the conflict between Israel and Hamas ... oftentimes mocking the death of Palestinians over these past few months.

He caught heat back in November for writing the names of Muslim UFC fighters onto a bomb that seemed to be on the front lines -- including Khabib Nurmagomedov and others who've expressed support for Palestine. Haim was clearly trying to taunt them.

It's unclear if he himself is the one that's actually writing the names, or if he's having someone else in the IDF do it on his behalf -- but in any case, the guy has owned it all.

Now, a new photo of some missiles apparently in the possession of Israeli soldiers has been posted to his Twitter account -- and he's roping Kanye in ... in very crude and cruel fashion.

Above the pic of the missile -- which looks real -- he wrote, "@kanyewest you don’t like us jewish. So  we don’t like you too !!!" The picture itself features a shell with the writing ... "Kanye West Flying to Gaza Haim Gozali." The photo echoes what he'd posted before.

Haim appears to have been recently banned from X, but he's back now ... and reveling in the ability to post again -- with this image being one of the first things he's thrown up.

Of course, the reason he's even invoking Ye has to do with KW's antisemitic rhetoric over the past year or so. He hasn't explicitly talked much about the war, but he has spent a lot of time in that region for the past several months working on and finishing his new album.

12:04 PM PT -- Taylor was seen cheering on Travis and co. from her luxury box, and it looks like Santa was by her side the entire time. Word is, that's her broski, Austin ... so it's a whole family affair.

No sign of Travis' mom, Donna, here ... but they're saying his dad Ed is in attendance. It also looks like the fans brought out their best Swiftmas posters for the game as well, per usual.

Taylor Swift is back in the building to watch Travis Kelce -- only this time, a couple things are different ... it's Christmas, and her mama is there too for the very first time.

Big day in Kansas City ... 'cause Taylor could be seen cruising through Arrowhead Stadium ahead of kickoff like she normally does -- but on Monday morning, Andrea Swift was right next to her -- riding in the front passenger seat of a private golf cart driving them around.

Taylor was in it too, but she was in the back ... and both of them waved at people like they were in a parade as they passed cheerful onlookers. Oh, and Santa was there too!

Like we said, Andrea's never been to one of Travis' games with Taylor (that we're aware of anyway) and we honestly haven't seen much of her during T-Swift's romance with the Chiefs tight end. We have seen her dad, Scott, a handful of times ... but no Mama Bear 'til now.

Unclear why that might be the case, but in case it wasn't clear already -- Taylor's parents are divorced ... so that's why Andrea isn't usually right by Scott's side at these sorta outings.

Today, however, it looks like they'll be a united family in front of cameras -- 'cause Scott is said to be there as well ... and we're sure to see them soon enough here in the suite.

This will be the 8th game of Travis' that Taylor's attended ... she's made it a regular thing this season, and her appearances are always memorable -- especially as she gets more into it.

Remember, she's on a break from work at the moment ... and doesn't have to hit the stage again until February when she'll fly to Tokyo for more 'Eras' shows. In the meantime, she's been spending a lot of time with Travis ... including the holidays, minus Thanksgiving.

It's shaped up to be quite a year for her, to say the least. Here's to a couple more games to finish 2023!

Kroy Biermann is highlighting his holiday by snubbing his estranged wife, Kim Zolciak ... and her exclusion is jarring.

The retired NFL'er threw up a snap of him and his 4 kids with KZ -- Kroy Jr., Kash, Kaia and Kane -- with Papa Bear standing proudly behind them and grinning from ear to ear. His caption was also pretty telling on how he's feeling about his marriage/divorce right now.

He wrote, "Merry Christmas from the Biermann’s!!🎄 (-2 😢) I didn’t get a picture of the family enjoying @arianabiermann ‘s church service and I had this taken after @briellebiermann and Billy had departed in the direction of their car as we were almost outside from our service."

KB added, "I couldn’t be a more proud father of you 2 and the littles! ❤️ Got to do better at remembering to capture more pictures." Interesting ... he noted Brielle and Ariana here -- who are actually Kim's biological daughters -- but not their mother.

BTW, no posts from Kim herself ... she hasn't thrown anything up since mid-December.

This marks just the latest up-and-down moment for them ... for now, it seems like Kim and Kroy are on the outs -- this after sending signals of reconciliation just a month ago. Of course, they also had a huge blowout fight that required the cops to called over.

The NFL is gifting fans with a slate of games this Christmas ... and what better way to celebrate the holiday than by shining the spotlight on some wives and girlfriends of the league's biggest stars!!

Of course, all eyes will be on the lookout for Travis Kelce's lady, Taylor Swift, when the Chiefs host the Raiders at Arrowhead Stadium ... and if she shows up, expect her to be screaming expletives from a suite with Brittany Mahomes, Patrick's ride-or-die wife.

Maxx Crosby's wife, Rachel, and Davante Adams' lady, Devanne, will be hoping those new friends go home upset ... as they'll be pulling for their boys from Las Vegas.

Following the AFC West rivalry game, the Giants and Eagles will have a divisional matchup of their own ... and both teams are coming off a loss.

Darren Waller's wife, Kelsey Plum, is all about winning, though -- she just captured her 2nd consecutive WNBA Finals with the Las Vegas Aces in October ... so maybe she can give some victory vibes to her tight end hubby.

Sterling Shepard's girlfriend, Carolyn, will most likely be at the game, too ... as this will be their first Christmas as a couple.

Jason Kelce's wife, Kylie will be singing "Fly Eagles Fly" before singing Christmas carols together later in the night ... after all, the All-Pro center has his own holiday EP with fellow teammates!!

The last game of Christmas Day -- Ravens and 49ers -- is chock full of supportive WAGs ... including Jadeveon Clowney's girlfriend, production makeup artist Nanaj Re ... and safety Kyle Hamilton's high school sweetheart, Reese Damm.

On the other side, George Kittle's ride-or-die, Claire, is always cheering on her man ... and Fred Warner's wife Sydney, who is expecting their first child in March, will be rootin' for Niner Gang as well.

And last but not least, Christian McCaffrey's fiancée, Olivia Culpo, could potentially be present for the contest, too ... which would certainly be a nice present for the running back.