TMZ Sports - Page 50

Scottie Pippen is not bankrupt -- but according to a federal judge, he cannot sue anyone that said he was.

As TMZ first reported, Pippen sued a TON of media outlets for defamation back in 2011 after they published articles claiming he was broke. As proof he'd never gone belly up, Pippen said he has never worth less than $40 million at any point in the last 10 years.

Pippen wanted $1 million from every media outlet that said his finances were in the toilet.

But a federal judge in Illinois dismissed the case this week, claiming the comments about Pippen's personal finances DO NOT count as defamation. As a result, Pippen was awarded nothing.

After chalking up another loss, Harvey Levin (1-2) is emerging a LEADING below-average NFL analyst ... and now he's sinking his teeth into our Week 4 matchup -- Raiders vs. Broncos.

Here's how Harv's callin' it:

"I don't like people who abandon L.A. ... so, I'm going for Denver."

"I feel like anyone whose home base is at sea level is at a definite disadvantage in the Rockies."

"I'm glad the Broncos replaced Tebow ... I think the team is better of secular."

"I like the Broncos logo better than the Raiders logo because it reminds me of the '57 Thunderbird."

When asked how he feels about his unimpressive record at picking winners:

"1 and 2 isn't horrible. I'm pacing myself."

So, we gotta ask ...

The NFL's regular referees returned to the gridiron tonight to a thundering applause from the crowd -- and even got a personal welcome-back hug from the scariest man in football ... Ray Lewis.

As you know by now ... the NFL reached a deal yesterday with the real refs -- ending the Reign of Error ... courtesy of the infamous replacement refs.

As the entered the field for tonight's Ravens-Browns match up, the refs each tipped their caps in a show of appreciation for fans' support.

Lance Easley -- the NFL replacement ref who made the TD call in Monday night's Packers vs. Seahawks game tells TMZ ... he stands by his decision, adamantly saying, "It was the correct call."

Easley told us he can't believe he's being vilified ... "I didn't do anything wrong."

He says strongly ... the Packers player who allegedly intercepted the ball never had singular possession because, "You have to not only have the ball but have either 2 feet or a body part on the ground, and that never happened."

Easley says this was clearly a case of simultaneous possession -- meaning the catch goes to the offensive player -- adding, "Put any other official who knows the rules and they would make the same call."

Easley told us, no one has ever seen a play like this before, so there's no point of reference to judge the call. He says, "I don't appreciate the negative stuff."

Easley -- who refs at El Camino and Pierce Junior Colleges as well as Occidental, all in Southern California -- says the replacement refs did what they were expected to do.

L.A. Lakers star Jordan Hill will not go to jail for allegedly choking his ex-GF during a nuclear argument in Houston back in February after striking a sweet plea deal with prosecutors ... TMZ has learned.

According to a clerk at Harris County Criminal Court in Houston, TX ... Hill plead no contest to the charge this morning and in exchange was given a 1-year deferred sentence and a $500 fine. In other words, if Hill stays out of trouble for the next year and pays the fine, the whole case will be wiped from his record.

We broke the story ... Hill was charged with felony domestic violence after his ex filed a police report, in which she accused the NBA player of assaulting her, leaving bruises on her legs, and then trying to choke her.

The fight allegedly took place on February 29th. Hill's ex filed the police report on March 29th.

The REAL NFL refs will return to the field for tonight's Ravens vs. Browns match-up in Baltimore ... but some of the players are still concerned ... telling TMZ, "They’re comin' off cold turkey, so it’s going to be very interesting."

TMZ spoke with a member of the Cleveland Browns who reminded us, "The refs usually have a pre-season."

Overall, the players are fired up about the end of the replacement ref era.

We spoke with Ravens player Bryant McKinnie who says he's "very glad" they're back ... adding, "The real refs have better control of the games."

A member of the Browns, who wished to remain anonymous, tells us, "People will be so happy to see the refs. They will be the highlight of the game … at least for the first quarter."

NFL legend Warren Sapp finally has some financial news he can celebrate -- a federal judge just wiped out a giant chunk of his overwhelming debt ... by discharging the football star from his bankruptcy case.

TMZ broke the story -- Sapp filed for chapter 7 back in April, claiming he owed more than $6.7 million to creditors, but only had $6.45 million in assets ... which included 240 Air Jordans, a lion skin rug and a boxing glove signed by Muhammad Ali.

A Florida judge decided Sapp's financial house was in order ... and discharged him from bankruptcy on September 24.

But the NFL star's not completely out of the woods -- he's still on the hook for hundreds of thousands of dollars in tax debt, child support and alimony ... which was NOT covered by his Chapter 7 filing.

Hey, it's a start.

9:45PM PT It gets better ... according to nfl.com the REAL refs will be back on the field for Thursday night's game between the Browns and Ravens.

NFL fans -- and people tired of listening to whining NFL fans -- REJOICE ... the league has reached an agreement to end the lockout of the REAL referees.

Details of the agreement involve the NFL Referees Association and the NFL making compromises on salaries, staffing, and blah, blah -- but what you really care about is the REAL referees could be back on the job by this weekend.

So maybe that disastrous, embarrassing, horrendous and disgraceful ending to Monday Night Football (below) -- can now be seen as a good thing ... since it clearly put pressure on both sides to end the chaos.

The NFL did NOT secretly hire black-and-white-striped Foot Locker employees to work as replacement referees ... despite all the terrible calls recently ... this according to the sneaker giant.

Foot Locker just released a statement, saying, "Despite recent allegations, our employees have spent the last few weeks at our stores and not at NFL games.”

It's all in response to a joke making the rounds on the Internet ... that the replacement refs are so bad, they must actually be Foot Locker employees.

Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr. can't get together in the ring ... and won't fight in court either -- they've finally ended a 3-year legal beef over doping allegations with a settlement agreement.

As TMZ previously reported, Pacquiao sued Mayweather Jr. back in 2009 for defamation ... after Mayweather allegedly accused Pacquiao of using performance-enhancing drugs.

But yesterday, legal docs were filed on behalf of both parties, stating the boxers had settled the matter entirely and Pacquiao agreed to drop his lawsuit.

Terms of the settlement are unknown -- but both parties will cover their own legal fees.

Boyz II Men singer Shawn Stockman -- aka Aaron Rodgers' betting buddy -- feels the NFL is heading down a dangerous path with these crappy replacement refs ... and Commissioner Roger Goodell better halt the runaway train ASAP, or else.

Stockman says he hasn't spoken to Rodgers since last night's catastrophe against the Seahawks -- but tells us, "He got robbed. It's horrible. They really need to do something about these officials. It's ridiculous. It's really bad now."

Stockman says Goodell better settle the referee dispute asap ... because once the playoffs roll around "these are gonna be crucial games that these really inexperienced officials are going to have to regulate."

Check out the clip ... Stockman sends a shout out to Rodgers -- who, by the way, STILL hasn't paid off that 49ers jersey bet.

Green Bay Mayor James Schmitt fired off an angry letter to NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell -- as promised -- claiming the labor dispute with referees is threatening the Packers on-field success ... AND putting the entire Wisconsin town in financial jeopardy.

TMZ obtained a copy of the letter ... in which the Mayor claims the NFL's elite status is being "threatened by less than qualified officials who are not quite at the same level as the rest of the league's representatives."

Mayor Schmitt, who's also a shareholder of the publicly owned Green Bay Packers, continues ... "last night's game creates a negative perception on the NFL brand, which in turn jeopardizes the Packers' chance for success as well as the potential to negatively affect our local economy."

WWE announcer Justin Roberts might want to invest in a chauffeur ... 'cause dude got pulled over on his way to work TWICE in the past two weeks ... TMZ has learned.

Sources tell us the first incident occurred in Canada ... Roberts was driving to a WWE show in Toronto and made an illegal left turn on his way to "Monday Night Raw" ... and was slapped with a $52 ticket.

Incident numero dos went down on Friday ... we're told Roberts was rushing from Pittsburgh International to a show at Penn State ... when cops caught him driving 74 mph in a 55 zone and hit him with a speeding ticket ... this time it ran him a cool $160.

NFL players are in danger of seriously injuring themselves -- thanks to replacement refs like the ones who blew last night's game -- this according to a source at the players' union.

While everyone is, rightfully, up in arms over the refs awarding the Seahawks a bogus game-winning TD -- a source at the NFL Players Association tells TMZ ... "Health and safety is number one."

The source added ... "The owners imposed a lockout on a group [of referees] with 1500 years of combined NFL experience."

According to the source, the new refs don't have the chops to make the calls that prevent player injuries -- "We didn't make the call to put these guys in there, risking the integrity of the game, player safety, and all that stuff."

We're told the NFLPA has serious concerns its players are risking their careers with such inexperienced refs on the field.

L.A. Clippers player Matt Barnes has cut a plea deal and in the process scored a big victory ... because prosecutors rejected the felony, agreeing the case was nothing more than a low-level misdemeanor ... TMZ has learned.

You'll recall, Barnes was arrested near a Manhattan Beach, CA restaurant in late July, where he had been dining with his wife, "Basketball Wives" star Gloria Govan. The Manhattan Beach cop -- who had previously stopped and cited Barnes twice before -- waited for Barnes outside the restaurant for 2 hours before placing him under arrest for driving with a suspended license.

As the cop attempted to cuff Barnes, he tried handing his car keys to his wife. The officer grabbed Barnes' hand and the bballer pulled away ... and the cop felt that was enough to take Barnes in for felony resisting arrest.

But the D.A. didn't see it that way. Barnes just pled no contest to interference with the duties of a police officer -- a misdemeanor. Barnes -- whose lawyer Blair Berk appeared in court on his behalf -- got a $100 fine, 30 hours of community service, 13 sessions with a counselor and he was placed on informal probation for 24 months.

The charge of driving with a suspended license was dismissed after Barnes proved he had a valid license. He pled no contest to a much lesser offense -- driving while not in possession of a license. For that Barnes got a $100 fine and was placed on 12 months informal probation.

WWE superstar Cameron is ADAMANT -- she did not drive her car while sloshed on martinis outside the Tampa airport ... pleading not guilty to DUI today.

As we previously reported, Cameron -- real name Ariane Andrew -- was arrested back in August​ on suspicion of DUI. The police report said Cameron was traveling with a male passenger who told cops they had been drinking martinis before getting in the car.

The report says Cameron blew a .20 ... more than twice the legal limit in Florida.

The report also says the WWE diva allegedly offered cops a $10,000 bribe to let her go ... which clearly didn't pan out.