TMZ Sports - Page 28

Vanessa Bryant surprised the UConn men's basketball team with some Kobe kicks ahead of its Sweet 16 matchup with SDSU ... gifting the unreleased "Italian Camo" Protros to the squad -- and the players loved them!!

The Huskies got the amazing gifts on Wednesday, some 24 hours before they take on the No. 5 Aztecs in Boston as part of the NCAA tournament's next round.

In video posted by the team, you can see the Big East champs had no idea they were going to get the presents from Vanessa ... and the players went nuts when they officially got to unwrap the Nike sneakers -- which won't be available to the public 'til April.

"I just wanna say thank you to Vanessa Bryant and the Bryant family. We appreciate you," senior guard Hassan Diarra said after getting his pair. "We're gonna show out in the NCAA tournament!"

The shoes have been dubbed the "Italian Camos" ... and they were created to pay tribute to Kobe Bryant's Italian background.

This, of course, is not the first time UConn's gotten some custom Bryant footwear ... during last year's tourney, the team -- which is part of the Nike Mamba Program -- was gifted custom Huskies Kobe 8 Protros.

Remember, Kobe always had a soft spot for UConn ... he was famously a big fan of the school's men's and women's basketball teams when he was alive -- as was his daughter, Gianna, who went to several games with Dad during her life.

It's a bad day to be long grass at Landon Dickerson's house ... 'cause the Philadelphia Eagles lineman held up on his promise to get a brand-new lawn mower with his $84 million extension -- and he's already testing it out!!

The 25-year-old guard went viral with his honesty earlier this month ... revealing he was exploring the idea of treating himself to a fancy outdoor appliance after securing his big payday.

Dickerson wasn't kidding ... 'cause the two-time Pro Bowler showed off his new toy on Wednesday, cruising down his driveway as he took the riding grass-cutter for a spin.

"I got me a mower," Dickerson casually said to the camera.

But it's not just any mower we're talking about -- Dickerson seemingly went all-out with his purchase, getting what appears to be a Gravely Pro-Turn 560 Kawasaki ... which comes with a whopping $15,249 price tag.

It was a pretty practical move, especially considering Dickerson's home has a huge yard ... and the guy takes pride in his stripes!!

Draymond Green issued a mea culpa for his actions on his "The Draymond Green Show" Thursday morning ... admitting, "I said what I said. I deserved to get kicked out at that point."

"It just can't happen," he added.

Draymond Green was ejected from yet another NBA game Wednesday night -- this time for screaming at a ref -- and Steph Curry was so upset that it happened again, he got visibly emotional on the floor.

The latest DG meltdown happened early in the first quarter of the Warriors' matchup with the Magic in Orlando ... after Green was furious with official Ray Acosta over some foul calls.

Green went up to the ref and began screaming in his face ... and, initially, Acosta appeared to be set to let it all slide with a technical call.

Dodgers superstar Mookie Betts tells TMZ Sports despite all of the recent drama surrounding Shohei Ohtani and his former interpreter ... L.A. is absolutely locked in on the 2024 season.

Betts made it clear to us while out at a charity appearance at a Raising Cane's in Alhambra, Calif. that the Ippei Mizuhara gambling scandal is just not a distraction.

"No, no, no, no," the shortstop said. "We're just focused on business. Taking care of business and that's all we keep first."

We're almost at the weekend, but until we get there ... why not refuel with some TV topics?!

Let's kick things off with "TMZ Live," where Harvey and Charles continued to break down the aftermath of the raids on Diddy's homes ... including dramatic footage of what the feds left behind at his Holmby Hills mansion -- namely, an absolute mess as they tore the place up.

Before this Houston native throwin' up deuces for the camera turned into a professional basketball player, he was just a star and the captain of his high school squad before making it big in the NBA.

He currently is a small forward for the Miami Heat but you've also seen him play for the Chicago Bulls, the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Philadelphia 76ers.

And, don't count out his famous friends ... Camila Cabello, Alix Earle and Diplo just to name a few.

Need one more clue? "Jimmy Buckets"!

Logan Paul says the coverage of his failed CryptoZoo project led to the darkest period of his life ... revealing he at one point contemplated taking his own life amid the backlash.

The YouTuber, boxer and WWE Superstar opened up on his mental struggles in Graham Bensinger's documentary, "5 Months with Logan Paul" ... detailing the breakdown he had while in Denmark with his fiancée, Nina Agdal, and her family in 2022.

Logan said he missed out on the chance to meet Nina's father due to his emotional state ... admitting he was in "a pretty dark spot" after YouTuber Coffeezilla released a video series investigating his NFT game and accusing it of being a scam.

Ice Cube clearly thinks Caitlin Clark can succeed in the Big3 ... but one man who's convinced she can't is ex-NBA star Kenyon Martin, who said Wednesday she wouldn't be able to score a single point in the 3-on-3 league.

The Iowa Hawkeyes star received a $5 million offer to join Cube's hoops org. on Wednesday ... but when Martin was asked how he thinks she'd fare if she accepted the deal -- he made it clear, he thinks it'd be a mess.

"It's a step under prison ball," the former NBA player said of the Big3's action on Gilbert Arenas' "Gil's Arena Show." "Could you imagine her getting stuck down on Reggie Evans?"

Diddy's associate got hauled away from the Miami airport he and the rap mogul got stopped at this week in handcuffs while being arrested ... which can now be seen on video.

WSVN 7News obtained body cam footage that shows 25-year-old Brendan Paul being led away by police officers Monday from the Opa Locka Executive Airport and placed into a cruiser, where a cop buckled him into the backseat.

As you can see, Paul was compliant and silent as they took him to jail ... not saying much, and not being asked much either. Before they throw him in the car, they pat him down.

Before Mookie Betts steps up to the dish for the Dodgers for their home opener, he was out serving dishes at Raising Cane's ... doling out a bunch of chicken and fries to a grip of fans who turned out to support him.

The shortstop worked a shift at the fast food chain's location in Alhambra, Calif. some 24 hours before L.A. takes on the Cardinals at Dodger Stadium in order to raise some funds for his foundation ... and hundreds flocked to the eatery to get a glimpse of the baseball star.

Mookie was in great spirits as he worked the cash register ... handing out tendies and Texas Toast with a big smile on his face.

Betts also signed autographs for those who ordered from him -- before he addressed the massive crowd that showed up.

The 31-year-old thanked everybody -- and then he received a $100,000 donation from Cane's for his charity.

Amid all of the festivities, Betts spoke with TMZ Sports about getting behind the counter ... saying he was sure his many times as a drive-thru customer would translate to the other side of the window.

Shaquille O'Neal might think Ice Spice is "so dam fine," but he swears he wasn't trying to rizz up the rapper with his Instagram caption after the Super Bowl .... claiming he was just trying to be nice!!

The 52-year-old Hall of Famer explained what happened on his "Big Podcast With Shaq" this week ... saying he ran into IS when he hopped over to Taylor Swift's Allegiant Stadium suite during halftime of the big game.

Shaq shared a pic of his meet-up with Swift, Spice and others ... and he raised a ton of eyebrows when his caption praised the "Think U The S*** (Fart)" MC's beauty.

Shakira and Lucien Laviscount now got everyone thinking they may be dating -- and it's not just 'cause they grabbed dinner ... he also plays her love interest in a new music vid.

The singer and "Emily in Paris" star hit the town Tuesday night in NYC -- following her surprise Times Square performance -- and they chowed down at celeb hot spot Carbone ... rocking matching all-black outfits as they came and went.

They also appeared to be getting into the same SUV ... and while there were no definitive signs of PDA -- the fact they were rolling together, in and of itself, kicked the rumor mill into overdrive ... namely, the notion they might be together as a couple.

Caitlin Clark's team hasn't pounced on the Big3's $5 million offer just yet ... with Ice Cube revealing his basketball league doesn't know whether she'll take the massive payday.

The 3-on-3 organization cofounder joined the "Pat McAfee Show" on Wednesday to discuss the historic proposal ... and despite the radio silence on Clark's end so far, he's holding out hope until he gets a definitive "yes" or "no."

"They have it and if they wanna sign it, we'll be happy to have her play in the Big3," Cube said.

John Lennon pulled no punches about how much he detested the Beatles' 1964 knockout photo shoot with Muhammad Ali ... that's according to the guy who snapped those iconic images.

Famed Beatles photog Harry Benson spilled the tea on the tension between the legends while celebrating 60 years of snapping pics of the band, telling Fox News Digital ... Ali wasted no time throwing shade, telling the singers their music wasn't all that.

Not only did he hit the Beatles where it hurt by questioning their musical chops, but Ali also went on to size them up, calling them "tiny, small, little men" compared to his towering frame.

Travis Kelce just offered up a pretty good excuse for not showing off his most chiseled physique while out in the Bahamas ... explaining his weight's up right now because, well, it's the heart of his offseason!

The Kansas City Chiefs star touched on his dad bod while having a conversation with his older brother, Jason, and new Eagles running back Saquon Barkley on the latest episode of "New Heights."

Saquon asked the bros of the two, who could drink more ... and after the guys bantered a bit back and forth -- their respective weights entered the chat.

Draymond Green has found himself at the center of more criticism over his on-court antics ... this time, the Golden State Warriors star is getting backlash after wrapping his arm around Patty Mills' neck and forcing him to the ground.

The incident went down during the first quarter of the Dubs' road matchup against the Miami Heat on Tuesday ... when Green got tied up with Mills as he moved through the paint to try to defend Bam Adebayo's shot.

A nearby official immediately blew his whistle ... and the play was reviewed to see if Adebayo's attempt happened prior to the the common foul.