TMZ Sports - Page 47

Stan Van Gundy is going scorched earth on The Worldwide Leader ... after the network unceremoniously dumped his little brother Jeff Van Gundy after nearly two decades with ESPN, and he's PISSED!

Jeff -- an NBA head coach for 11 seasons (Knicks, Rockets) -- worked for ESPN for 17 years until he was laid off last summer.

JVG has largely been quiet about the shocking move ... but, not so much for his brother Stan, who aired out his frustrations on Dan Le Batard's "South Beach Sessions" show.

Indianapolis 500 fans better come hungry to the race track his weekend ... 'cause officials are making a grip of food available for purchase -- including 40-ounce Tomahawk steaks!!!

The big event is slated to go down on Sunday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indiana ... and the thousands who hit the venue to see the action will have plenty of options to keep their tummies occupied as they watch drivers speed around the oval.

For the normies, chili dogs topped with short ribs and cheese sauce, burgers grilled with pineapple and bacon, and french fries loaded with pork tenderloin can be nabbed throughout concession stands at the stadium.

A pro golfer was so concerned about getting his clothes dirty during a shot in his round on Friday morning -- he actually unbuckled his pants and ripped his top off!!

The PG-13 moment went down at the Soudal Open in Belgium ... when Louis de Jager found himself in a bit of a pickle on one of the holes.

He hit a shot that landed in some muddy water -- and after considering taking a penalty stroke to get a better lie ... he decided to just hack it out of the hazard and take his chances.

Angel Reese was ridin' high after an impressive win against Breanna Stewart and the New York Liberty on Thursday ... and the WNBA star decided to take a shot at Caitlin Clark -- before deleting it.

But, nothing gets by the internet!

The 6-foot-3 forward celebrated the statement win by tweeting ... "And that's on getting a WIN in a packed area not just cause of one player on our charter flight. #SKYTOWN."

Pres. Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden turned the White House into the hottest spot in town with a swanky state dinner for Kenyan President William Ruto and his wife Rachel.

It was quite the guest list, with Sean Penn bagging himself an invite and even guitarist Don McLean strumming his way into the mix at the dinner Thursday -- with none other than country music star Brad Paisley taking the stage to keep the party going.

From political heavyweights Bill and Hillary Clinton to NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, philanthropist Melinda Gates, tech guru Sheryl Sandberg, and NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, the dinner was a who's who of movers and shakers.

Travis Kelce is coming to Harrison Butker's defense ... insisting the Kansas City Chiefs kicker is both "a great person and a great teammate."

The future Hall of Famer made the comments on the latest episode of his "New Heights" podcast Friday ... touching publicly on his pal's controversial Benedictine College speech for the first time since it sparked a slew of outrage earlier this month.

Many, of course, had been itching for Kelce's opinion on the matter ... especially after Butker evoked the name of the tight end's girlfriend, Taylor Swift, during the polarizing chat with graduates.

Mike Tyson might be 30 years older than Jake Paul, but that won't stop El Gallo from going for the kill if the opportunity presents itself on July 20 ... telling TMZ Sports there's no chance he takes it easy on the boxing legend in their upcoming fight.

The combat sports community is torn on who's got the upper hand in the Paul vs. Tyson bout -- Tyson is obviously one of the greatest to ever do it, but he's decades removed from his dominance ... while Paul is far less experienced, but in his prime when it comes to age.

We spoke with 27-year-old Paul as the big day rapidly approaches ... and asked if there's any part of him that would hold back based on the fact his opponent is a few years from being a senior citizen.

After two weeks of outrage, Harrison Butker's controversial commencement speech finally resulted in someone's firing -- it just wasn't the Chiefs' placekicker who lost his job -- but instead, a member of the City of K.C.'s social media team got the axe after doxxing the Super Bowl champ.

On Thursday, Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas revealed the city "separated" from a K.C. staffer who publicly roasted 28-year-old Butker after his Benedictine College speech, tweeting, "Just a reminder that Harrison Butker lives in the City of Lee's Summit."

The message was deleted shortly after ... and an apology put up in its place -- "We apologies (sic) for our previous tweet. It was shared in error."

Jaelan Phillips is cool with Dolphins, but clearly not lizards ... 'cause after the Miami star discovered a large iguana had somehow invaded his toilet, he freaked out!

The linebacker was surprised to find the little creature chillin' in his bathroom on Thursday afternoon ... and he was so terrified of it, that he told his Instagram followers in a series of hilarious videos that he had to call out an exterminator to handle the situation for $150.

While he waited for the expert to arrive on the scene ... the 24-year-old said he had absolutely no idea how the green beast got into his toilet bowl -- insisting "he's not a pet."

Michael Strahan's daughter Isabella is facing a new hurdle in her cancer battle -- an unfortunate side-effect of her medical treatment.

Isabella shared her health update on YouTube, discussing what she's been experiencing while undergoing chemotherapy for a medulloblastoma -- a rare malignant tumor located at the base of her brain. The 19-year-old says she's suffering some memory loss due to the meds she has to take.

She explained ... "I'm given this drug to protect my hearing and just because I have a reaction to it, they give me Ativan. And for some reason, this happened last time too, I can't remember a single thing about that day."

Josh Giddey is now in the clear ... months after police closed their investigation into allegations the Thunder star had an inappropriate relationship with an underage girl -- the NBA has followed suit.

Sources told ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski the league made the decision to officially wrap up its probe into the claims this week.

No further explanation from the Association was given.

If Patrick Mahomes gets bored winning Super Bowls, he's got a place in the WWE ring ... 'cause Triple H just sent out an open invitation to the 2x NFL MVP!

The WWE COO made the offer on Thursday ... a few days after 28-year-old Mahomes appeared on the The Pat McAfee Show where he opened up about his recent Monday Night Raw appearance in April, where he momentarily lent Logan Paul his SB rings, who proceeded to use them as brass knuckles on Jey Uso.

FYI, Pat, aside from hosting one of the most popular sports talk shows, is also a WWE commentator.

Mahomes said he had a blast ... but regrets that he didn't jump in the ring. Triple H agrees.

Logan Paul is going head-to-head with Ryan Garcia ... but not in the ring -- the WWE Superstar's Prime Hydration just hit the boxer with a defamation lawsuit.

The Maverick aired his frustrations on social media just minutes ago ... claiming his drink company is "under attack" by false narratives being thrown around on social media -- and it's time to take action, with King Ryan being the first on his list.

"Today we begin to hold those accountable who’ve damaged our brand for attention while we correct the narrative," Paul said on Instagram. "We're here to stay and will continue to change the world of hydration with bold flavors and creative innovation 📈."

Cops have just released video from the scene of Scottie Scheffler's arrest last week ... and in the footage, you can see at least one officer pushed the golfer against a car -- before placing him in handcuffs.

The images were captured by a camera affixed to a street pole located just a few feet away from Valhalla Golf Club -- the site of this month's PGA Championship.

Due to its proximity to the arrest ... it did not capture the 27-year-old's initial interaction with authorities -- however, you can see it did record the moments after Louisville Metro Police were able to stop him as he tried to make his way into the course.

Charles Barkley is giving his blunt reaction to the rumors surrounding the future of "Inside The NBA" ... admitting morale is at an all-time low amid reports the show is on life support.

The rumors have been swirling for weeks -- TNT is on the verge of losing its broadcast deal with the Association to NBC ... which, as a result, would mean the end of the wildly successful basketball program starring Chuck, Ernie Johnson, Kenny "The Jet" Smith and Shaquille O'Neal.

Barkley opened up about the situation on "The Dan Patrick Show" Thursday ... and he certainly didn't sugarcoat anything -- but admitted even he has been left in the dark.

The man who arrested Scottie Scheffler outside the PGA Championship in Kentucky last week violated policy during his encounter with the golfer, officials announced Thursday.

At a news conference packed with media members, Louisville Metro Police Department chief Jacquelyn Gwinn-Villaroel said Bryan Gillis did not turn on his body-worn camera as he had his run-in with Scheffler on May 17 -- a huge no-no.

She stated Gillis has been reprimanded for the act. The city's mayor, Craig Greenberg, also admonished the officer at the newser for his actions.