TMZ Sports - Page 50

12:45 PM PT -- Terrence Shannon Jr. breaks his silence on the not guilty verdict ... saying on Friday, he's thankful to those who stood by him during the case.

"I knew I was innocent of these horrible crimes and I had faith in God that someday everyone else would know that too," Shannon said on Instagram.

"I am so grateful to all of you for believing in me, especially my family, friends, and legal teams whose support kept me going.

Shannon said he's ready to move on from this and focused on "my path forward."

Joey Chestnut's at the center of the biggest competitive eating controversy in over a decade, and now "Jaws" is speaking on camera for the first time since Major League Eating banned him from the Nathan's Hotdog eating contest.

But, there might still be a chance to compete!

The 16-time Mustard Belt Champion was at the Indiana Fever vs. Atlanta Dream game Thursday night -- a contest the Fever won 91-84 -- when he was asked about MLE's decision while talking to On3 Sports.

The Indiana Fever got a rare victory on Thursday, but Caitlin Clark clearly wasn't satisfied with her performance ... honing her craft with her boyfriend, Connor McCaffery, right after the game.

The superstar rookie was caught on video working out on the Gainbridge Fieldhouse court after putting up only 7 points in the Fever's 91-84 win over the Atlanta Dream ... with her man offering up his assistance.

You can see the 6-foot guard taking several mid-range shots while McCaffery played defense ... perhaps to get the not-so-great shooting performance outta her system -- as Clark went 1-6 from three and 3-11 from the field in the contest.

Logan and Jake Paul might still be fighting for respect in the boxing community, but they got a president's big stamp of approval -- with Donald Trump praising the brothers' accomplishments in the ring.

The Donald spoke at length about his love for combat sports during his sit-down with the WWE Superstar on his "Impaulsive" podcast this week ... and when it came to the Pauls, Trump couldn't say enough good things about the two -- declaring them legitimate pugilists.

In fact, No. 45 proved he's been keeping an eye on their careers by asking Logan if he'd ever take a fight against Jake ... and shockingly, the Maverick admitted there were serious talks for them to book a bout following Mike Tyson's medical emergency.

Travis Kelce, Patrick Mahomes and the rest of the Chiefs received their newest Super Bowl rings on Thursday night ... and the bling was so loaded with diamonds and rubies, the stars couldn't wait to show them off!!

The guys got the championship rings -- their third in the last five years -- at a special ceremony in KC ... and once they broke the jewelry out of a locked box, it wasn't hard to see all of the dudes were enamored by the pieces.

Each one features 529 diamonds and 38 rubies. The ice also has a top that opens up and holds an homage to the "Tom & Jerry" play that won Super Bowl LVIII. Every player and coach's last name is engraved on it as well.

Two of the biggest and most consequential soccer tournaments this side of the World Cup are kicking off this month -- starting today -- featuring the best players on planet earth, and FOX Sports has wall-to-wall coverage!

In other words ... bid your family and friends farewell, and buckle up for almost NONSTOP SOCCER!

TMZ Sports spoke to U.S. soccer legend Alexi Lalas -- who will anchor FOX's in-studio coverage -- and we asked him to break down both tourneys.

Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck have issues with finances, Goldie Hawn has issues with crime in Los Angeles, and James Worthy remembers Jerry West ... all this on today's hot takes.

First on "TMZ Live" Harvey and Charles dive into the financial issues surrounding Ben and Jen as they hurtle towards divorce.

Conor McGregor's UFC comeback has been put on hold -- the "Notorious" is OUT of his UFC 303 main event fight against Michael Chandler.

UFC honcho Dana White announced the devastating news late Thursday night -- just two weeks and a day before the scrap -- saying 35-year-old McGregor suffered an injury, and wouldn't be able to fight. The nature of the injury isn't known at this time.

38-year-old Chandler is also off the July 29th card ... as the UFC will now attempt to rebook the fight at a later date.

The student who says a coach ran up from behind him and choked him with a rolled-up shirt earlier this month is now planning to sue the man and his school ... telling TMZ Sports he's dealing with back pain and several other issues stemming from the scary incident.

14-year-old Michael Moon says it all happened back on June 4 ... after a coach at his Ypsilanti Middle School had seen him "horseplaying" with one of his female classmates.

Moon claims the coach asked him to do pushups due to the interaction -- but when Moon told him he couldn't do them because of a hand injury he had recently sustained ... he says the man became upset.

Illinois basketball star Terrence Shannon Jr. has been found not guilty in his rape trial ... with the NBA prospect being acquitted of all charges on Thursday.

The decision was announced minutes ago ... with the jury coming to its conclusion after just over an hour of deliberation.

Shannon Jr. was accused of sexual misconduct following a trip to Lawrence, Kansas in September ... and was suspended from the Illinois basketball team after being charged with rape and sexual battery.

Transgender swimmer Lia Thomas had no chance to win a legal challenge that would have opened the door for a potential Olympics bid -- and she should instead compete against other trans swimmers ... so says a former Team USA gold medalist.

Decorated swimmer Donna De Varona, who won two golds at the 1964 Summer Olympics, joined us on "TMZ Live" Thursday, and we asked her about Lia's failed bid to overturn rules preventing transgender women from competing against biological women at the Olympics.

Donna says Lia was never going to get the ban overturned because she didn't get a U.S. Aquatics membership card, which DDV says prevented Lia's challenge from having any standing from the get-go.

UConn men's basketball head coach Dan Hurley is opening up on his decision to reject the Lakers ... admitting the team succeeded in piquing his interest -- but ultimately, he has many more reasons to keep his current gig.

Hurley -- who just turned down a six-year, $70 million offer from Los Angeles -- spoke with reporters about his eventful week on Thursday ... and said the idea of taking the reins for the Purple and Gold was "obviously tempting" and a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

The opportunity to coach a future Hall of Famer in LeBron James wasn't lost on Hurley either -- in fact, he revealed he spoke with the four-time champion on the phone during the interview process.

Shakira isn't looking to lock down a new man -- but what's interesting is that she seems open to banging casually ... this after being linked to a ton of famous dudes of late.

The singer talked about her dating life in her new cover story for Rolling Stone, where she declared she's "not thinking about [dating]" right now ... indicating she doesn't have the space or time for a new boyfriend in her life at the moment.

However, she isn't ruling out love forever, adding ... "What can I tell you, I like men. That’s the problem. I shouldn’t like them with everything that’s happened to me, but imagine how much I like men that I still like them."

Tom Brady was so strict with his diet during his playing days ... some of his cheat meals featured exactly ONE chicken wing!!!

... at least, that's according to Julian Edelman, who revealed this week that's how his former quarterback seriously got down at team dinners prior to Patriots game days.

The ex-New England wide receiver went in-depth on the topic with People ... saying he found out about Brady's weird eating quirk when the Pats would get the same food catered every night before games -- including chicken wings.

Teyana Taylor is earning nearly double what Iman Shumpert makes every month ... at least that's what he's telling the judge overseeing their divorce.

In new court documents, obtained by TMZ, Iman breaks down the estranged couple's finances ... and he says there's a big pay gap.

According to Iman's accounting, Teyana's gross monthly income before taxes is $93,885 ... nearly double the $47,981 he says he brings home every month.

Lakers legend James Worthy says he's heartbroken over Jerry West's death ... telling TMZ Sports he's going to miss his good friend dearly.

Worthy -- who West actually selected with the first pick of the 1982 NBA Draft when he was LA's general manager -- spoke with us just hours after Jerry's passing on Wednesday ... and reflected on his time with the Hall of Famer fondly.

James said he learned of the news at a place Jerry loved -- a golf course -- and initially, his heart hurt. But he said moments later, the memory bank of his time with West kicked into high gear.